The Wrong Earth
by Treco890
Summary: When a renegade Time Lord decides to go on vacation, he wants to go someplace warm, so he heads to the Earth's South Pole. Wait, that's not right, no he doesn't. Now he has to figure out how he managed to travel to a different dimension, all while trying to help his new friends in this different world. Rated T for language.
1. Chapter 1

** A/N: This story's earlier chapters are going to get touched up a little bit to try and make them better.  
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Chapter One: The Time Lord at the Pole

There was a whooshing noise as a brown wardrobe landed on the icy plains of the South Pole. Inside, the Time Lord Saltrallosimozonyith, or Saltrall, was putting on the finishing touches of his landing. He pulled up a monitor to check where he was to properly disguise his craft.

"That's odd," he said, pushing the monitor down. He went over and opened the door to see for himself.

"Huh, I don't remember Ochion being so... white," he said to himself as he closed the door and went back inside.

he pulled up the monitor again to check his location, only to find that he was on Earth.

"Well, that's odd," he mumbled, tapping on the glass surrounding the TARDIS' compass, "I really gotta fix that damn compass."

He sighed and stepped back, looking at a thermometer, he decided he should grab a coat before heading out. He did that, then set the TARDIS to camouflage as an iceberg, and stepped outside.

He stepped out and locked the door behind him, but when he turned around he was greeted by a teenage girl standing before him, glaring.

"Um, hello," he said, looking down at her.

"Who the heck are you, and why did you just step out of an iceberg?" The girl asked suspiciously.

"Um, science," Saltrall replied, looking over his shoulder at his spacecraft, "a better question is why the hell are there people living at the South Pole?" He asked, confused.

"I live here, with the Southern Water Tribe, what the hell are you doing here?" she asked taking a step towards him, causing him to back up and silently pull out his Sonic Screwdriver.

"Look, the Earth I know, has a couple of research facilities on the South Pole, not a whole nomadic tribe!" He shouted.

The girl must have been offended, as her expression turned fierce and a pillar of water appeared to her left.

"I'll show you a nomadic tribe asshole!" She shouted, forcing the water at the Time Lord.

Out of self-defense he pulled out his Sonic, pointed it at her, and pressed the button. It began to whir and glow green, causing the water to drop, he then moved it to her arms and legs, immobilizing her.

"Hey, what did you do?!" She asked angrily, trying to move but finding herself paralyzed.

Saltrall walked up to her with his Sonic at his side.

"Sonic paralysis, I just froze your nerves to keep you from moving," he raised the Sonic and began to scan her, a small tinge of annoyance in his voice, "Don't worry, nothing permanent, just need you to stop trying to kill for two seconds,"

He flicked his wrist and the screwdriver opened at the top and he looked at the display on it.

"No, that can't be right," he whispered, turning away from her, he slapped his Screwdriver, "that can't be right at all,"

"What, never seen a waterbender before?" The girl asked him, smugly from behind his back.

He whirled around, "Waterbender?" He asked, amazed.

"Yeah, a waterbender, where the hell have you been?"

"Well, to be honest Velzia 5, and I'm supposed to be on Ochion relaxing, but I'm not so sure where I am now," he said as he walked over and picked her up, even though she was still in her bending pose.

"HEY! Put me down!" She shouted, trying to struggle but failing.

"Oh, calm down, will you? I just need to take you back to my iceberg for a couple of minutes," he replied before he shook his head at how stupid that sounded and opened the door to his TARDIS.

"Whoa, what is this place?" The girl asked with amazement as he set her down. She looked around as best she could since her neck hadn't been paralyzed.

Saltrall sighed before answering, "Well, guess I need to tell you. My name is Saltrallosimozonyith, I'm a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey, in the constellation Kasterborous, at galactic coordinates ten zero eleven zero zero by zero-two from galactic zero centre, I'm 396 years old,"

He paused, "No, wait, I'm 609 years old," He said before he turned and looked back at Korra.

"Anyway, I'm not supposed to be here,"

"Then, what are you doing here?" The girl asked, slightly scared.

"I don't know!" Saltrall shouted, slamming his hands on the console of his craft however he took a deep breath and calmed himself down, "look, I'm sorry for kidnapping you, but I really need some answers, let's start with your name, okay?"

"Okay, my name's Korra," she said, not fully trusting him, "now Saltrallosimgoliath, or whatever your name is, what do you want to know?"

"Just call me Saltrall," he said, "Where am I?"

"The South Pole,"

"What year is it?"

"169 AG,"

"Alright, thank you," he said, "Now, I'm going to let you go, but before I do, know this: I can kill you with a push of a single button," he held up his Screwdriver, "So don't get any funny ideas, got it?"

Korra just nodded, skeptical, "Uh huh, sure you can," she said.

Saltrall sighed, and went over to his fridge and pulled out a melon.

"See this melon?" He asked, showing her. She nodded and he flicked his wrist, opening his Sonic Screwdriver before placing it the melon and pressing the button, letting it buzz for a couple seconds before the melon exploded.

"That could be your brain, inside of your head," he said, shaking off his hand and closing his tool of trade, "now please, go home and don't look for me, don't ask about me, heck, try not to think about me, okay? If I need you, I'll look for you," he then pressed the button on the side of the Screwdriver, finally freeing Korra from her frozen position.

"We'll see," she said, glaring suspiciously at him one last, before turning and throwing the door open and walking back out into the cold.

Saltrall sat down at the console of his TARDIS and ran his hand through his hair.

"Guess it's time to do some research," he muttered to himself, cracking his knuckles before pulling up a keyboard and his monitor.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: To Catch an Avatar

Saltrall had been in his TARDIS for almost three days, researching almost nonstop, but to almost no avail. Finally on the third day the frustration got to him.

"GOD DAMN TIME LORD INTELLIGENCE!" He shouted, tossing his keyboard to the side, shoving the twisting monitor around, and punching the console.

He stood up and kicked the console too.

"ALL THE KNOWLEDGE IN THE FREAKING GALLIFREYAN DATABASES, AND NOTHING ON THIS EARTH?!"

He plopped down in a nearby chair and rubbed his temples, thinking back to his time as head of the Chancellery Guard, always studying reports in the library, but he couldn't remember anything.

"Nothing, absolutely nothing!" He muttered softly. He thought deeper, however, and soon had an idea.

He retrieved the keyboard with his Sonic and went back to the console. He sat down, fixed the monitor and typed in the phrase "1 AG," thinking back to the year, what was her name? Korra? said it was. Finally it seemed like he found a lead.

His TARDIS managed to hook up to the database of a place called Republic City, but he could only find a little in photographs, so he decided he would have to visit it person. He ran a hand through his hair and realized he hadn't showered in days. In chuckled and decided that personal hygiene beat information for now.

After he got out of the shower he felt like he just regenerated, smiling, he walked in to his bedroom and got out his signature outfit.

He pulled on a pair of blue jeans, a black tee shirt, pulled on a sweatshirt, and finally pulled on his black hiking boots. When he went outside earlier he noticed that the snow wasn't all that deep, so he wasn't too concerned about that. Finally he grabbed a large winter coat, a gift from his last companion, a 1920s American suffragist who had a fondness with fashion.

He grabbed his Screwdriver off the console before heading out. The Sonic was a gift from his friend the Doctor, he wasn't sure why he went by The Doctor, but he did. Regardless, before he was banished from Gallifrey he modified it in response to a threat against the Council. He managed to change the frequency for when it was extended, and he added a button on the bottom in order to prevent, well, accidents. He added the new feature as a means to kill anyone who threatened him or his loved ones. By placing the extended tip against a body part, it sent out a sonic frequency that destroyed whatever was against it.

Unfortunately, he had been forced to use it before, several times in fact, on Gallifrey, and that was why he was banished, but he almost always refused to talk about that day. Sometimes the nightmares come back to haunt him.

Finally, he left his TARDIS and pointed his Sonic in the air. After a few seconds of use he checked the display and found that the nearest settlement was a few miles to the north. Steeling his resolve he set out in hopes of finding Korra again, and to do his least favorite thing, ask for help.

A half hour walk through frozen landscape, which was actually warmer than he thought it would be, and he found the village. Not wanting to draw unwanted attention he stayed around the outskirts and out of plain sight.

After waiting for several minutes he found the person he needed. He moved into the village and waited between some huts. He found her practicing with fire, today, instead of the, he assumed, usual water, which she suggested was her strong suit by her blue outfit and the fact that she lived on a glacier.

After about twenty minutes she took a break, and he took that opportunity to try to get her attention. He got out his Sonic and buzzed it several times. Korra noticed and turned to face the disturbance, her eyes widening when she saw him.

He quickly gestured her over to where he was, and she walked over.

"What the hell are you doing here?" She asked with a scowl on her face, clearly not happy to see him.

"Look," he replied, suddenly anxious, "I need your help,"

"Oh you do?" She asked, crossing her arms, smirking.

Saltrall rolled his eyes, "Yes I do, I hate that fact, but it's unavoidable,"

Korra just laughed and shook her head.

"Alright fine, what do you need? It's better than this boring firebending,"

"I thought you were a waterbender?" Saltrall asked, furrowing his brow in confusion.

"I'm the Avatar, I can bend all four elements," Korra replied, chest swelling with pride.

"Fascinating," Saltrall said, getting lost in thought for a second before shaking his head, focusing on her again, " But I need to get to Republican City,"

"You mean Republic City?" Korra asked, an amused smile returning to her face.

Saltrall groaned, "Whatever, can you help me?"

"Yeah I guess, if you're willing to pay," she said.

"Pay what, I'm a time traveler, I'm broke!" He said, pulling out his pockets for emphasis.

This made her laugh, "I was kidding, I don't need money," she said, "can't you take a joke?"

He looked away, embarrassed, "Not really, no..."

"Don't worry, well, actually, did you say time traveler?"

"Yeah, and apparently, one time dimension crosser," he said, pulling out his Sonic and twirling it between his fingers.

"So why do you need to get to Republic City?"

"Well, as you know I'm not from here," He replied, she nodded, "so I need to..." He paused, thinking of the right word, "get acquainted with the environment."

Korra nodded in understanding, seemingly thinking, before responding.

"Sorry, all I know is that it's far to the north,"

"Ugh, alright, thanks I can find it from there," he said, before turning around to leave.

"Now hang on," Korra said, grabbing his arm, causing him to look back, "can I come with you?"

"Sorry, I can't trust you, yet, you seem like the type to hold a grudge." He replied with a hint of sadness, "Besides, you look busy."

"You can trust me!" She pleaded, tightening her grip.

"I'll be back, that's a promise, I can't say when, but I will be, and when I return I promise I'll take you with me," he said as she let go of his, "but I still need time to adjust here,"

He started walking back to his TARDIS when he heard Korra sigh and go back to her bending practice. Saltrall looked back one last before continuing on his.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter III: Research of Old

Saltrall kept searching and eventually found a map which showed where Republic City was. He landed a few miles north in a park and cloaked his TARDIS as a large tree before embarking for the city proper.

He decided he would have to ask for directions, so as to avoid any suspicions about a strange person waving around a magical glowing stick through the air, and he had no money to buy a map, and it was too early for him to get arrested.

With a sigh he set forth. When he actually reached the city he was amazed at how modern it looked, in a very steampunk kind of way. There were cars, airships, and a bunch of other stuff he thought he'd only see on the internet. He eventually reached a park and he stopped to sit down. He tried to think about where to find the library, however he saw a passerby and decided to ask for directions.

"Excuse me, ma'am, I'm not from here, can you tell me how to get to the Republic Library?" He asked, tapping the lady's arm.

"Of course, it's right over-" She started to say as she pointed in a direction

Before she could finish, though, a shady person walked by and suddenly grabbed her purse, pushed her down and started to run.

"Hey!" She shouted, falling into Saltrall, "that was my purse!"

"Don't worry, I got this," Saltrall said, starting to run after the thief.

"You really... don't... have too," She said, but he was already running off and she walked warily behind him.

He looked behind him to make sure she was out of eyesight before he stopped, pulled out his Sonic Screwdriver, and zapped the thief's leg, causing him to fall with a cry.

Saltrall, put his Sonic away and walked up to him.

"Petty crime doesn't pay you know," he said while crouching down and picking up her purse.

"What did you do to my leg?" The thief asked, scared, trying to move his leg, but failing.

"Oh, don't worry, you'll be fine," Saltrall replied before standing, he quietly pulled out his Sonic and fixed his leg.

"Now get out of here before I decide to call the cops,"

The thief ran off without a second glance and Saltrall turned around, twirling his Sonic between his fingers, only to see the woman standing behind him. He stopped twirling his Sonic and looked at it before looking back at her a few times.

"Um... I can explain," he said, quickly putting his Sonic behind his back.

"Wow, how did you do that?" She asked walking up to him, "can I see that tool of yours?"

"Um, yeah I guess, just be careful," he replied, handing it to her cautiously.

"Wow, I've never seen anything like this!" She exclaimed, admiring it and looking at it from all angles, "how does it work?"

"Well, you just press the button and point it at something," Saltrall said, "with people it can paralyze nerves or, you know, worse things, oh, and it can unlock doors, and be used to scan resources in metal or other various tasks, but it doesn't work on wood." He furrowed his eyebrows, taking a mental note, "I should really fix that,"

"Wow..." she looked starstruck, "would you mind if I take this and study it, I want to see if this can be mass produced,"

"Um, sorry, I kind of need it," he replied, "now I do believe you need to show me to the library."

"Oh right, sorry, come one, let's go," she replied, handing him his screwdriver back, and they made their way to car, "my name's Asami, by the way. Asami Sato, what's yours?"

"Saltrallosimozonyith, but you can call me Saltrall,"

"Wow, that's quite a name," She said, caught off-guard by his foreign name, "Are you from around here?"

"Nope, not even close," He replied matter-of-factly with a hint of a smirk. He always found people's reactions to his name amusing.

"Interesting," she said, walking as if in a daze as she thought about what he meant.

They reached her car and she took him to the Republic City Library, a towering building full of books on almost anything.

"Thanks for the ride, Asami," Saltrall said with a smile as he got out of the car.

"No problem, here, take this," she handed him a business card, "call me sometime, if you get the chance," she said with a wink before speeding off.

Saltrall blushed a little and looked down at the ornate card. Along the top was written Future Ind. and beneath that as written Asami Sato, with a phone number and address.

He smiled and put the card in his sweatshirt pocket with his Sonic and looked up at the building. He always loved libraries, big or small, but this rivaled even the Gallifreyian archives in size. With a smile he climbed steps and made his way into the library.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter IV: Truth

Saltrall had been in the library for several hours, and by the time he left it was early evening and he just learned a whole lot about his current situation, when he was, what Korra was, and how everything seemed to be falling apart around him.

He learned that the year was 169 AG, or After Genocide, referencing the Air Nomad Genocide. He learned of the Hundred Year War, the war between the Fire Nation and the world. He learned about the Avatar, the master of all four major elements, air, water, fire, and earth. He learned of Aang, the previous Avatar, and the current Avatar, Korra.

Learning of the events that unfolded 169 years ago angered him deeply. He always tried to be a man of peace, even if that meant killing one person, but he knew that he couldn't go back to kill Sozin to prevent the Air Nomad Genocide or else he could destroy the entire modern timeline.

That was always the problem with time travel, some events are so momentous that they can't, under any circumstances, be changed.

As he was leaving the library, though, he saw two shady characters walk by, so he decided to follow to see what they were planning.

He followed at a distance until he saw them turn into an alley, then he jumped on some boxes, and made his way to a nearby roof and watched them intently and Saltrall realized that this was turning into a drug deal.

He suddenly had a moral conflict, on one hand, he'd been in the Chancellery Guard and had a set of personal morals he preferred to uphold, but on the other hand he thought that it was their own faults for getting into a mess like this. With a sigh he hopped down and drew his Sonic, paralyzing their legs.

"Hey, what's going on with my legs?" One of them asked as Saltrall walked up to them.

"Hey, who are you?" The other one asked, looking at Saltrall with fear in his eyes, "Are you a cop?"

Saltrall shook his head, "No, I'm not, don't worry," He took the drugs, "And don't worry, your legs are okay."

The guy who was holding the drugs tried to take them back. "Hey! I need those!"

"Let me guess, you're out of a job and are trying to support a family?" Saltrall asked. The man nodded, "That's something I've seen far too much in my life, here," Saltrall took a few coins from his pocket and put them in his hand, "It's not much, but I hope you can find a better job."

He fixed their legs and they stumbled out of the alley. Saltrall looked at the bag in his hand and sighed, putting it on the ground he activated his Sonic and destroyed it.

As he left the alley he turned to his right and saw Asami leaving the restaurant that made up the side of the alley he was in and she turned towards him, making eye contact. He smiled softly and waved at her. She waved back and smiled before heading in the other direction.

He looked around and decided to walk in the other direction of her. He was walking around when he saw another disturbance, this one much more serious looking. He saw two masked men turning down into an alley, carrying what appeared to be weapons of some kind. Not wasting any time, Saltrall ran after them.

"Hey!" He shouted as he turned down the alley behind them. They turned and jumped up some crates onto the rooftop and Saltrall quickly followed.

As a part of his training on Gallifrey he had taken thirty years of gymnastics and yoga to ensure that he was strong enough for any situation. Ever since he was banished he had kept up that routine and now was convinced he could go toe to toe with anyone his size or slightly larger.

He jumped up onto the rooftop and was charged by one of the men. They were too close for him to use his Sonic so he prepared to attack them with his hands. He blocked the punch from the first one and grabbed his arm. As he was moving his arm he saw the glove on his opponent's hand spark to life with electricity.

"What the hell?" Saltrall said before punching him in the jaw. He turned as his collapsed and was met with a sharp electric shock to shoulder.

"GAAH!" he exclaimed as he fell to one knee, holding his shoulder. The man who shocked him then kicked him in the chest and he fell backwards down into the alley and was knocked unconscious.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter V: Threats

He had no idea how long he had been unconscious when he finally came to. He rubbed his head and sat up, however, and looked around. It had been at least a few hours, he assumed, because it was dark out and the lights from a restaurant across the street were shining into the alley.

As he walked past he saw three shady looking men talking quietly. Curious and suspicious he grabbed his Sonic in his pocket and walked carefully into the alley. He was about to yell to get their attention when one of them saw him and alerted the others. Two of them were wearing strange masks and armor and the third looked like a regular citizen. The civilian ran in the other direction while the two masked men jumped on some boxes and onto the nearby rooftop.

Saltrall ran after the two men and jumped up the same way they had. Just as he landed one of them attacked him. The man punched Saltrall in the chest, making him stumble, but he blocked the next punch and swept his attacker's legs out from under him. Saltrall kicked him in the side to keep him down but looked up just as the other man attacked him.

Saltrall tried to block his punch but was a second too slow and got hit across the face, causing him to stumble backwards. He didn't have time to recover as the man kicked him off the roof.

Saltrall cried out as he fell. The man who kicked him watched him fall before helping up his compatriot and they ran off. Saltrall laid on the ground for a few minutes, trying to regain his bearings, before he got up shakily. He felt his pocket and sighed in relief when he felt his Sonic still in his pocket. He rubbed his head and looked up at the rooftop he was kicked from, it wasn't very high but he had gone through a stack of wooden shipping crates which must have done most of the damage, along with hitting the concrete.

He groaned softly when he tried to walk, feeling a throbbing pain in his leg, but he powered through and stumbled out of the alley, still holding his head. He waved softly to some passing citizens who rolled their eyes, probably thinking he was some random drunk. With a sigh he dropped his hand and started to limp back to the park where he left his TARDIS.

As he was walking he saw a few people with dark grey metal armor walking around, one of them, an old woman with grey hair and two scars on her cheek noticed and walked up to him.

"Excuse me, sir, can I speak with you for a minute?"She asked walking up to Saltrall.

"Um sure," Saltrall replied, confused and still a little dazed, "but can I ask who you are first?"

"Oh, you must not be from around here, I'm Lin Beifong, chief of police here in Republic City." She replied, holding out her hand.

"Name's Saltrall," He replied, shaking her hand softly, "Now, what can I do for you?"

"Have you seen any suspicious activity around here lately?" Lin asked him.

"Well, I fought a couple of masked men on that roof over there, that's probably suspicious." Saltrall replied matter-of-factly before stumbling a little and grabbing his leg, letting out a soft groan of pain, "Dammit," he muttered, "That's not good."

Lin's eyes widened and she motioned to one of the policemen with her and he helped Saltrall stand and they helped walk him to the police station.

The next few hours were spent being questioned in the police station. By the time it was over Saltrall had recovered but was exhausted and annoyed, just wanting to get back to the TARDIS and sleep.

By the time he reached the TARDIS the sun was starting to come up, causing Saltrall to groan and rub his face. Too tired to go to his bedroom he laid down on the couch and fell asleep within seconds.

He shot up a few hours later, panting and sweating. He sighed and rubbed the back of the his head. He'd had another nightmare, but this one was different than the usual ones, it wasn't a memory, it was something... else.

He couldn't even begin to describe it, it was just a jumble of pictures and shouts. Standing up he did his best to forget about it.

He decided to stay close to his TARDIS, at least for the time being, and try to think about things that weren't his nightmares.

He took a quick shower and felt refreshed and relaxed. He'd forgotten about his dream, too, and stood in front of the console, looking at the monitor as he searched for various things here and there.

Eventually he decided it would be best to modify his Screwdriver again. He had modified it once, right after the Doctor gave it to him, and he turned it into a weapon more than a tool, but now he had decided that he no longer needed it as so much of a weapon. He grabbed it off the console and headed down the main hallway to his workshop.

For almost three hours he had sat there listening to various CDs he had picked up during his journeys while working on his Sonic. He listened to heavy songs because he always worked best when he could feel the floor shake from the bass of a song.

He smiled as he put the last panel in place and set down the Sonic before standing up to stretch. His work was complicated and grueling, but in the end everything came together. He was well known for being able to quickly fix mechanical issues on Gallifrey, and he hadn't lost his skills over time, finishing the improvements to his Sonic in just over three hours, where it would have taken most people around twelve.

Regardless of his ability he still had to test it. He completely modified the end, instead of having a button he adjusted it to have different settings that could be adjusted by twisting the end. His hope was that he could use the pulse emitted by the Screwdriver to be able to scan people instead of just paralyzing them.

The main reason he did it was to see if anyone had a hidden weapon so he could prepare, just in case the situation arose.

Regardless, however, he decided not to go back to Republic City anytime soon. He realized that instead of going back he could just relax inside the TARDIS or explore the surrounding countryside, but that could wait for another day. Instead he went back out to the main hub, sat down, and pulled up the monitor.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Congratulations! You've officially reached the chapter that marks the beginning of the crossover with the actual series! Enjoy.**

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Chapter VI: The Waiting Game

Saltrall wasn't sure how long he had been parked in the little park, all he knew was that it had been a while.

He was taking the time to grow a beard and mustache as a part of his plan to try to visit Republic City more inconspicuously. He had gone back a few times to try and find more info about a so-called "Anti-Bender Revolution" that was occurring. Instead, all he'd found was more bumps on the head and trips to the police station, either because he had been bumped by the Equalists, or because he had taken the law into his own hands. Chuckling, he remembered the last time he had been to the station.

_"Well, Mr. Time Lord," Lin said as she sat down across from him in the interrogation room, "What did you do this time?"_

_Saltrall just sighed and shrugged._

_"You know, chief, assault and battery, destruction of property, adultery, the usual." He said sarcastically. _

_Lin didn't smile or find it amusing._

_"Cut the crap, we know you're an alien, and that you're helping us track down Equalists, but we can only do so much to keep you out of here, so just tell me the truth."_

_Saltrall looked down, "I... attacked an old lady because I thought she had a weapon." He responded truthfully._

_Lin just rubbed her face and told him to leave the room. After he did he smiled when he heard her break out laughing from behind him._

He took a shower before he decided to head out. He pulled down the monitor on his console and set it the external camera system to make sure no one was around. Confident, he put up his hood and stepped outside.

It was much warmer than last time he really went out for a long period of time, and he was tempted to put his down, but he thought about possibly being ambushed again and decided against it.

It took him about an hour to reach the city and he took in a deep breath, steeling himself for whatever lie ahead.

He kept his head down as he walked into the city. He walked for about five minutes when he accidentally bumped into someone.

"Hey watch where you're going!" he yelled at Saltrall.

Saltrall just mumbled his apologies and kept walking. He noticed that the person was carrying a sign, however, and he was intrigued. He put his hood down, beginning to sweat profusely under the sun, and he sat down on a nearby bench.

The person he bumped into, he noticed, was a protester. He hadn't noticed all the posters set up with a picture of a masked man and other writings that, thankfully for him, were translated by his TARDIS' translation core. They were all talking about oppression of non-benders and how some guy named Amon was going to save them.

Saltrall just rolled his eyes as he sat listening to the man preach to a small group of people. He sat there, listening for a few minutes, when he decided to get up and leave. When he stood up, however, he saw a girl ride up on a large animal that looked like a polar bear and a dog put together. His eyes widened when he saw who it was.

"Korra?" He whispered to himself under his breath. He walked towards them, staying off the sidewalk so she hopefully wouldn't see him. He leaned against a tree and listened.

He had to admit, the protester had a way with words, he kept the whole crowd against her the whole time, until they forced her to walk away in defeat.

She walked in his direction, forcing him to walk back towards the bench he was sitting on. While on his way, however, he stopped to let her pass in front of him, and he looked at her and they made eye contact, but he quickly walked away to prevent her from stopping him, and he heard her continue on her way.

He waited until she was turning away before he ran after her. He ran to where she was only to find her standing in the middle of a destroyed road, surrounded by police officers and three, he had to assume, criminals standing on the inside of a building with a destroyed front. Suddenly she got on her polar bear dog and ran off, followed by the police officers.

He walked up to an old woman crouched by a nearby food stand to ask her what happened.

"Excuse me, what happened?" he asked her as she stood up.

"Oh, the Avatar just showed up and stopped some members of the Triads," she sighed and looked down the road, "but she destroyed the street in the process, oh this is going to take forever to fix,"

Saltrall looked at the stand and saw a coin purse lying there. He walked over to it, making sure the woman wasn't looking, and took the small bag. He knew it was wrong and he would have tackled anyone he saw doing it, but he was short of cash so he took it and quickly jogged down the road in the general direction that Korra went.

He quickly stopped and saw a tuft of white fur lying on the ground, no doubt from his friend's polar bear dog.

He walked over to an alley and pulled out his Sonic. In his time away from the city he had tested it several times on passersby of his tree TARDIS, and he'd also used it on some Equalist grunts who tried to attack him. He had to modify it a couple more times to get it perfect, but now he felt he had it perfect.

He scanned the fur to find out where they were taken, and he got a lock on what he assumed to be the police station. Satisfied with what he found he made his way back out onto the street to begin walking to the station.

He walked for roughly 20 minutes before he reached the police station. He decided to walk inside to see what it looked like.

He took a seat on a couch in the waiting room against one of the walls. He sat there for a couple of minutes when he saw Korra leaving what he assumed to be the holding area with a taller old man with arrow tattoos and a goatee. He saw that they seemed to be arguing.

"Tenzin, please, don't send me back home," he heard her plead.

"_Old man's named Tenzin, got it," _Saltrall noted to himself, figuring this would not be the last time they would meet.

"You blatantly disobeyed my wishes and the orders of the White Lotus," He replied with disdain.

"Katara agreed with me that I should come, she said my destiny was in Republic City," Korra replied, exasperatedly.

Saltrall saw Tenzin's face turn red in a furious embarrassment.

"Don't bring my mother into this!" He said.

That was when they turned away from him and he couldn't hear what they were saying anymore. He waited for them to finish their argument when a police officer brought them her polar bear dog and Tenzin thanked him and they began to leave.

Saltrall stood up and, being closer to the door, got there first. He held the door open for them as they left. Tenzin thanked him, while Korra again looked at him suspiciously. Saltrall, unable to contain himself, winked at her when she looked at him. Her look of discomfort made him chuckle as he left after them.

He walked in the opposite direction as them and decided it was time to do some more research. On his way back to the library he stopped by a newspaper stand and looked at one of the papers. The date on it was a month he never heard of, 170 AG. He let out a low whistle when he saw that, not knowing it had been that long since he'd arrived. He tried to understand the month, but couldn't, but he had to assume it was summer, so he equated it with June for now. He pulled out his stolen coin purse and put down a few coins, Yuans the cart owner called them, and he grabbed a paper and continued on his way to the library.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter VII: Return

Saltrall had spent the rest of the day in the library, only leaving when they kicked him out. He sighed as he left, his least favorite part of the day was when the local library closed.

Although he left a little more confused than when he arrived because there was a person in there taking pictures of everyone who walked in, or in his case out of, the door, presumably for library cards, except he gave no indication of that. Saltrall just grabbed the picture when it was taken and walked out, but not before using his Sonic to damage the camera.

Deciding it was high time to return to the TARDIS, however, he began his trek home. He was lost in thought the whole time he was walking down a main road, but he was still whistling one of his favorite songs, when he saw a familiar face leaving a familiar restaurant.

He laughed softly and stepped into a nearby alley, waiting for Asami to walk past him.

"_There's a lot of alleys in this city,"_ he thought to himself, but he went in anyway.

He waited for Asami to pass before walking away in the opposite direction. He walked about a mile until he reached the outskirts of town, there he was confronted by a group of five people.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here boys," one of them, presumably the leader of them, said as they walked up.

Saltrall grabbed his Sonic from inside sweatshirt pocket.

"Hello, can I help you?" He asked as they surrounded him.

"That depends, what you got on you?" The ringleader said as they surrounded him at a little over arms length.

"I don't have anything on me, now I suggest you let me go before I get angry, you won't like me when I'm angry," he said, his voice taking on a more sinister tone.

The five of them laughed as three showed off their fire bending while the ringleader and his, presumably, right hand man, pulled out butterfly knives.

"Uh-huh, yeah we're so scared," the ringleader said mockingly.

"I'm warning you..."

"Oh look boys we're making him angry, whatever, he's not worth our time, just kill him," The ringleader said as he turned and started to walk away.

"Big mistake buddy," Saltrall said before turning around and punching the guy directly behind him.

He proceeded to grab him and use him as a shield as the other two shot their fire at him. Saltrall threw his human shield to the ground, screaming in pain as he was on fire, and ran at the one closest to him.

He shot fire at him again, but Saltrall already had his Sonic out and used it to dissipate the fire before punching him in the face, sending him sprawling on the ground. He immobilized the last one with his Sonic before turning to the two leaders.

"Hey asshats, your turns," he said walking towards them.

They yelled out in fear before turning and starting to run. Saltrall just pointed his Sonic at them and immobilized them as well. As they started to beg he opened up his Screwdriver.

"You idiots should've listened when you had the chance. You work for anyone?" He asked walking up to the leader.

"I'm not telling you shit!" He exclaimed in defiance. Saltrall just shrugged his shoulders and put his tool against his temple.

"Are you sure?"

The ringleader just spit in his face with a shit-eating sneer on his face. Saltrall sighed, wiped his face off and activated his Sonic, and he watched as the man's eyes rolled up as his brain exploded.

He left him standing there, arms and legs immobilized as his head slumped down, and walked over to his helper.

"What about you, you work for anyone?"

"The Triad, w-we work for the Triads!" He confessed in terror.

"Hmmph, thanks, they order you to attack me, or was it just a random hit?"

"It was random, we swear!"

"Alright, thanks, now get out of here, take your friend too." He said, unfreezing him.

He walked over to the man lying knocked out on the ground and checked his pulse before walking over to the last immobilized man.

"You see this?" Saltrall asked both of them, the men nodded, "go tell your bosses that if they ever see this face walking towards them, turn the other way and run."

He put the black and white picture from the library in his pocket before reactivating the nerves in his limbs.

"Now get out of here before I change my mind,"

With those words he watched the grunts run back into the city and he stomped on the unconscious grunt's head, killing him. After he did that he turned around, put his Sonic back in his pocket and kept walking, putting his hood up and moving a little quicker than before.

He managed to reach his TARDIS without further incident, but he also had a chance to calm down.

Even after almost 350 years of killing and maiming he was amazed that he still had enough humanity to feel remorse once he calmed down.

He had always been worried that as a young Time Lord he suffered from situational pentamood disorder, a rare Time Lord disease that affects the actions and moods of the individual in certain situations before they return to their normal selves once the situation passes.

For his entire life on Gallifrey he had been told that pentamood disorder was a disease and every family who had a child with it was shamed by the community. He believed he had it because that was one part of his brain that stayed the same through all his regenerations, but he never had proof, and he was afraid to ask anyone about it in case he shamed his family. Now it didn't matter since he wasn't in the same universe. At least, that's what it looked like, anyway.

He sat down by the console and rubbed his face. He hated his aggression, but there was no way to stop it without becoming cut off from the world as a whole, and there was no way that was happening.

He turned to his console and booted up a side computer he had. His travels to Earth in the 21st century had piqued his interests on video games, so he bought a computer, modified the processor and hard drive, got a few games and set it up as a means to relax.

In this situation he decided to just play the solitaire game that came with it until he tired himself out, then he shut it down and went to bed, trying to forget the events of the evening.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: This is an interlude chapter, taking place between Episodes 2 &amp; 3 of Book 1.**

* * *

Chapter VIII: Retribution

Despite being a "non-bender" Amon was not stupid about current events. Bring the leader of the Equalist uprising he needed to know what was going on around Republic City, so when he heard that one man had seemingly started a war against the Triads, and even more that he had no bending powers, he was intrigued.

Amon and some of his top officers were looking at Republic City while he was contemplating their next move.

"Lieutenant, I have a mission for you," the masked man said to the man on his right.

"Of course sir, what is it?" The lieutenant replied.

"Go to the headquarters of the Triads and ask them for as much information on their number one enemy as possible,"

The lieutenant bowed before hurrying off to fulfill his orders.

Amon was surprised to see what he had when he returned, it turns out their "number one enemy" was the same man the Equalists had been dealing with for over a year now. He waved his lieutenant off and looked out the window, thinking about his next move.

Back in the TARDIS there was an explosion and Saltrall emerged from under the console with black soot covering his face. It had been about a week since his trip to the police station, and he decided it was time to update his camouflage core drivers. This led to the aforementioned explosion.

"Right, don't connect the blue and red wires," he said with a cough, "causes minor explosion."

He stood up and shook his head clearing most of the dust from his face before walking into the bathroom to clean it. When he emerged he decided that he needed a break.

"Eh, the console can wait, I need some fresh air," he said to himself putting his screwdriver in his sweatshirt pocket and stepping outside.

It was early evening, around five he assumed, and the sun was beginning to set. He took in a deep breath and sighed, taking in the mild temperatures and feeling the breeze on his face. It was then that he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Going somewhere Mr. Time Traveller?" He heard the voice of the young Avatar behind him.

"Finally found me, eh Korra?" He said with a chuckle as he turned to face her. When he did she slapped him across the face, twice.

Saltrall shook his head again.

"Alright, I deserved that,"

"Where the hell have you been?! It's been over a year!" She yelled at him.

"I know, I'm sorry, I've been in this tree here," he said, pointing at the TARDIS tree. He chuckled at her confused expression.

"But, it- how?" She stammered.

"Time Lord technology, it's complicated," Saltrall replied, "We were the first ones to perfect the camouflage core for spaceships."

"I'll just nod and pretend I know what you're talking about,"

Saltrall nodded, he got that answer a lot in the past, and motioned with his head for her to walk with him.

They were walking through the park, talking about the time that they had spent away from each other, and catching up like old friends who hadn't seen each other in years.

"So what about since you got here to Republic City? I saw you in the park that first day, anything else exciting happen?" Saltrall asked as they sat down on a bench.

"Wait that was you?" Korra asked, shocked. Saltrall nodded, "hell, I didn't recognize you with the beard!"

"Good, I was going for the disguise look,"

"Why? Did something happen?" Korra asked, a little concerned.

"Well, I've been here a bit longer than you and in that time I MAY have broken a law or two, also I may have gotten mugged a few times as well" he said, rubbing his neck.

"Wait, what? Broken laws? Gotten mugged? Are you okay? What happened?" Korra asked, concerned.

"Well, I was in an alley, some people tried to mug me, excessive force was used, the details are kinda fuzzy, no one can say for sure who killed whom," he replied.

"Details are kind of fuzzy, you killed A PERSON!" She exclaimed before he put his hand over her mouth.

"Don't say it so loud," he whispered intensely before turning his head and mumbling, "and it was two people,"

"And you just walked into the police station willy-nilly?"

"Well, you see, it's complicated," He replied, exasperated

"Uh huh, I'm sure it is" Korra replied skeptically.

"I've been around a long time, it happens," Saltrall responded with a chuckle before coming to a realization. "Hang on, why am I telling you all this?"

Korra just shrugged and said sarcastically, "I don't know, you just started talking,"

Saltrall stared at her with an unamused face before shaking his head.

"So anyway, what have you been up to?" He asked her.

"I joined a pro-bending team," She replied with a smile.

"I don't know what that is..." He said.

She put her face into her hand and groaned, "you've been here a year yet you don't know what Pro-bending is?"

"I don't get out much!" Saltrall said, putting his hands up in defense.

Korra laughed at his response, "It's fine," she said, "I'll give you a ticket and you can come see the tournament in a couple of weeks,"

"Awesome, I'm looking forward to it," he said smiling.

"I'll get it for you tomorrow, meet me at the library, okay?"

"Awesome," Saltrall said, "see you then,"

With that Korra got up and stretched before bidding Saltrall goodbye and heading back to the city.

Saltrall remained seated, taking in a deep breath of the crisp, summer air before standing up and walking back to his TARDIS. As he was walking back he heard rustling in the bushes next to the trail, and when he turned and looked he saw what appeared to be someone hurrying away from the edge.

He pulled out his Sonic and pointed where he heard the noise. He activated it and looked at the screen, but nothing of interest came up, so he shrugged and kept walking.

In reality the figure who narrowly avoided detection was an Equalist who reported what he saw back to Amon, giving him all the more reason to spy on Saltrall.

The sun had slipped below the treeline by the time Saltrall reached his TARDIS.

"Well, time to get back to work," he said with a dejected sigh as he opened the door and stepped inside.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter IX: The Trooper

Saltrall strolled down the streets of Republic City, whistling a happy tune, enjoying the summer morning when he heard someone shouting in front of him. He looked and he saw a strange person shouting in front of a statue. He walked up just as a small group of people walked away from the person, who was looking down dejectedly.

"You alright there, man?" Saltrall asked.

"No, I gotta make 29,999 yuan by the end of the week."

Saltrall whistled in exclamation.

"That's a lot of cheese," he said, pulling a few yuan out of his pocket, "hope this helps," and he flicked them into his cup.

From behind him, Saltrall heard a car stop and he turned his head to look at it before turning away from it. It was a red car, typical of the Triple Threat Triad. Saltrall gripped his Sonic Screwdriver in his pocket as they stopped.

"Hey Bolin, is that you?" the voice from the driver's seat called.

"Oh, hey there, Shady Shin," Bolin said, still dejected.

"Who's your pal here?"

"I don't know, he was just walking down the street and he gave me a few yuan,"

"Hey buddy, you got a name?" Shin asked Saltrall.

"I think you already know it," he said turning around, smirking.

"Oh crap," the Triad members all exclaimed before muttering to themselves.

"Hey!" Saltrall shouted pointing his Sonic Screwdriver at them, "I'm still here,"

With that they drove off in terror, turning the corner with tires squealing. Saltrall turned back to the guy sitting in front of him.

"Saltrallosimozonyith, at your service, what's your name?" He asked sticking his hand out.

"Bolin," he said taking it and getting pulled up by Saltrall, "how'd you do that?"

"Oh that, not important, what is important is why you're raising money,"

"I'm trying to raise for our Pro-bending team to compete in an upcoming tournament," Bolin said.

"Hey are you on Korra's team?" Saltrall asked, remembering what she said after their last meeting.

"I am! My brother, Mako, and I have been pro-bending since our parents died," He said, turning glum.

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize," Saltrall said before looking down, "well I gotta go, you take care now,"

Saltrall began to hurry off, his head still down, only this time to avoid the gaze of a passing police officer walking the beat. When he saw him turn a corner he put his head was about to turn a different when he heard a cry for help.

He turned around and saw Bolin getting dragged into the back of the Triads car.

"Shit," he muttered under his breath as he turned around and ran back towards them, Sonic drawn.

Unfortunately, they saw him and they sped off before he could catch them, leaving him pointing his Screwdriver at nothing.

He dropped his arm and stood there panting. He needed to find Korra, he reasoned, but where to find her? Then he remembered Tenzin.

As he turned to leave someone bumped into him. When he turned to look at the person he was wearing a mask and when he saw Saltrall look at him he ran off. Not having time to worry Saltrall shook his head and took off in the opposite direction.

He ran back to his TARDIS and threw open the door before running to the console. He sat down and typed "Tenzin" into the search database. He found out he was one of the Council members for the city, and he lived on Air Temple Island. Armed with this knowledge he got up and readied the TARDIS for transport.

He landed on the island and changed his TARDIS to a different tree before grabbing a light jacket before he left. He felt something in his pocket and pulled out the piece of psychic paper he "borrowed" from the Doctor. In reality he took an extra piece while the Doctor was in the bathroom.

He opened the door and stuck his head out, only to see the doorway surrounded by a large contingent of soldiers.

"Well, this probably looks very suspicious too you guys but I can explain," he said stepping out of the TARDIS, he pulled out the psychic paper.

"Um, Grigori Rasputin, Republic City Department of Nature, Tree Investigative Division," he said showing the soldiers the psychic paper, "I was just checking this, uh, tree here for glitches and it has several, so I need to speak to the owner of this island..." He began to walk away from the tree, "and you're not believing this excuse are you?"

The White Lotus sentries all began to bend their respective elements.

"I'll take the rapidly forming elements in your hands as a no," Saltrall said, "Well, if you'll excuse me I have a place to be so I'm just gonna... RUN!"

Saltrall began to run away from the sentries, who began to fire at him.

As Saltrall was running Korra was talking to her friend, and love interest, Mako.

"Think something's wrong?" Korra asked.

"I don't know, Bolin has a knack for getting into stupid situations, See you... what the?" Mako began saying, but stopped as he heard screaming get louder.

"AHHHHHHHHHH!" Saltrall shouted as he ran around the corner of the house towards the two.

"Oh no," Korra said, facepalming.

Saltrall ran between the two of them, the sentries in close pursuit. Korra sighed and water bended the sentries so they stopped chasing him.

"Well... at least... I know that... I'm in the right place..." Saltrall said in between deep breaths as he stopped running, "thanks Korra, I'm gonna take a nap," he finished before passing out on the lawn.

He awoke in a room he didn't recognize, and he sat up fast, accidentally headbutting Korra and Mako at the same time.

"Ow!" Saltrall exclaimed, falling back onto the bed, holding his forehead, "Who just leans over someone's bed at all times?"

"It wasn't at all times, it was only 3 seconds," Mako said, frustrated.

"Yeah well look, string bean, still, ow!" Saltrall sat up again, "you got a name, kid?"

"Kid? Why you..." Mako began.

"Easy Mako," Korra said, the name gaining Saltrall's attention.

"Mako? Good, we're all together," Saltrall said rolling out of the bed and landing on his feet, "Bolin's in trouble,"

"What? What do you mean?" Mako said angrily.

"I mean some goons from the Triads kidnapped him!" Saltrall said walking towards the door, "come on, we gotta hurry,"

"Saltrall, you can take your TARDIS, Mako and I will ride Naga," Korra said when they got outside. Saltrall nodded and headed back to his ship. As he walked away he smirked as he heard Mako ask Korra some very confused questions.

He went back into his TARDIS and sat down at the console.

"Alright, girl, let's get the show on the road," he said, cracking his knuckles before twisting a few diddlies and pulling a lever and vanishing towards the city.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter X: Rescue

Saltrall was sitting on a bench, some steam was blowing past him from a nearby sewer grate, and he was staring at the partly decrepit building that housed the Triple Threat Triad. He had been here many times, mostly reconnaissance, and he was concerned about the lack of guards by the door.

He stood when he saw Korra and Mako arrive on Naga, and he saw the fire ferret Bolin was performing with earlier perched on Mako's shoulder. They walked over and dismounted Naga.

"Something's not right, there are usually thugs posted out front. We better be cautious." Mako said as they walked over to the door.

"I'll stay out here and watch for them, you guys go inside," Saltrall said, drawing his Sonic and walking to the other side of the building.

Korra kicked in the door and they went inside. A truck engine starting drew all three heroes to the back of the building.

Korra and Mako ran out the back door and saw Saltrall slumped against some cardboard boxes, holding his head.

"You guys go ahead, they hit my head pretty good," Saltrall said when he saw them.

They silently nodded and ran after the truck, leaving Saltrall there. He heard an explosion and saw Naga run past him before he closed his eyes and passed out.

He was awoken a few hours later when Korra bended some water into his face. He stirred and opened his eyes, squinting in the morning light.

"Ugh, my head is killing me, how long was I out?" He asked, rubbing his temples.

"A while, but we think we know where Bolin was taken," Mako said sticking out his hand.

Saltrall took it and Mako helped him up. He put his hand against the wall to stabilize himself as Mako handed him a leaflet.

"Where'd you get this?" He asked, looking at it, "and what's 'the Revelation?'"

"There's a protester in the park and decided to pay him a visit," Korra said, now come on, we need a plan."

Saltrall nodded and they all got Naga and headed out. They stopped on a bench under the trolley bridge to take a break. Mako and Korra sat on a bench while Saltrall was leaned up against Naga, and they were all looking at the leaflets.

"Why didn't the Equalists put a location on these?" Korra asked puzzled.

"Probably because they didn't want just anyone waltzing into their big "Revelation", whatever that is." Mako replied.

Saltrall scratched his chin, "I bet the information is on here somewhere, look at the backs,"

Mako grabbed two of the leaflets off the ground, "Yeah, look, there are four different images,"

"It looks like it's a map," Korra said excitedly.

The two of them grabbed some leaflets and put them over a map hanging on the nearby wall, proving that it was a map. Saltrall walked over to them and looked at it.

"It would appear that they are," Saltrall pointed at a factory on the map, "Right there."

They all looked at each other and smiled.

The three of them were standing in the factory site, all wearing disguises making them look like regular people, even Saltrall, who was known for playing a little risky, decided to play it safe.

Saltrall stayed back as Mako and Korra made their way to the doorman. Mako showed their invitation and they went inside. After they were inside Saltrall took a deep breath and let it out slowly, pulling out his psychic paper and hiding his open Sonic in his sleeve, and approached the doorman.

"This is a private event, do you have an invitation?" The doorman asked Saltrall.

Saltrall showed him his psychic paper and the doorman nodded in approval.

"The Revelation is upon us, my brother," he said, stepping aside.

"It is," Saltrall said pulling out his Sonic and grabbing the doorman by his throat and putting it against his head, killing him in seconds.

"And it waits for no man," he said, letting the body drop and he put his Sonic away and walked inside.

He walked inside and looked for Mako and Korra from the balcony, but all he could see was a large crowd of anti-benders. He stood against the railing and watched the proceedings until he saw movement from the side of the crowd.

"Korra..." He said before running to his right.

He saw her run into a side corridor and he looked for a way down. He saw a tarp strung up to cover something about ten feet below him, so he looked around before hopping over the railing.

He landed on his back, the tarp thankfully held his weight, and he dropped to the floor and ran after her.

He walked up to her while she was trying to open up a steam pipe by hand, but without much success.

"Need some help?" He asked, leaning over her shoulder.

"AH! Cripes, Saltrall, don't do that!" She said, jumping up.

"Sorry," he said, grinning guiltily, "here let me help you,"

He pulled out his Screwdriver and opened up the three valves in front of them, releasing a bunch of steam. Korra began to bend it into the main room.

"Good job, now let's go save Bolin," Saltrall said. Korra nodded and they ran back to the main room. They saw Mako slump to the ground, unconscious, and Amon's lieutenant stand over Bolin.

"You benders need to understand, there's no place in this world for you anymore," he said.

Korra sent a rock pillar flying into him.

"I wouldn't count us out just yet!" She exclaimed running up to the unconscious brothers.

"Naga!" She shouted, causing her faithful companion to come running.

Korra helped Mako stand up while Naga grabbed Bolin in her jaws. Korra and Mako hopped on her back as they prepared to leave.

"Saltrall, come on!" Korra shouted to him.

"You guys go ahead, I'll catch up!" He shouted back.

Korra nodded and they ran off. Saltrall looked around for a second, looking for Amon, before he too ran out the door.

Saltrall stopped after running outside and used his Sonic on the door, cleansing it off any foreign substances, before he looked around again and ran off.

Unbeknownst to any of them, Amon and his men were standing on top of the building.

"So that's our little alien friend, is it?" He said to himself, "Well, we will soon see how strong he is."

Amon let them go, allowing them to be the messengers of his strength.

Back on Air Temple Island the three men were sitting down, resting while Korra told Tenzin what happened. When she returned she was stone-faced.

"Well, I don't know what happens now," she said, "but it isn't good."

The three of them nodded in agreement as they looked out at the city, wondering what will lay before them in the future.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter XI: Reunion Part I

After Mako and Bolin returned to the stadium where they lived Korra began to go inside, but stopped and turned when she heard Saltrall follow her

"Aren't you gonna go back to your TARDIS?" Korra asked after she realized he was following her.

"I'll get it in the morning," Saltrall said nonchalantly.

"Alright..." Korra said, still a bit confused.

"It won't be that bad," Saltrall said, "I'll sleep on the couch."

"Okay," She said with a smile, "come on, I'll show you around,"

After the small tour Saltrall laid down on the couch and was asleep within minutes. He slept soundly until he was awoken by the scream of Korra from a few rooms over.

Saltrall jumped up and ran in to her room. He saw her sitting up in her bed, breathing heavily, and he ran up to her.

"Korra, are you okay?!" He asked, mortified, as he crouched next to her.

She looked at him, sweat dripping down her face, eyes wild. When it finally hit her who she was looking at she calmed down and her eyes softened.

"It's... It's alright, Saltrall. I just had a bad dream" She said, forcing a smile.

"Alright," Saltrall said, standing up, "I'll be in the other room if you need me,"

He walked out and Korra watched him leave until Naga took her attention away from him.

Saltrall went back to the couch and sat down, reaching underneath it to grab his boots. As he reached down, however, he felt like he was being watched. He sat up and looked out the window in front of him, but he saw nothing. He listened for any sign of movement, but all he heard was the sound of Tenzin's children playing outside.

He quickly tied his boots and walked out the front door. He stood in the doorway and looked around again, but still saw nothing. Still being cautious he walked around the house, examining the bushes. When he was finally convinced it was his imagination he gave up searching.

Deciding to visit the brothers he pulled out his Sonic and changed the frequency. He activated it and his TARDIS appeared in front of him.

"Everytime I think I have you figured out you have a new trick up your sleeve." He heard from behind him. He turned and saw Korra standing against the corner of the house.

"Yeah, I'm an enigma," he said, opening the door.

"Where are you going?" she asked standing up.

"Nowhere in particular, just into town, wanna come with?" he asked, stepping inside.

"No, I gotta train, thanks for the offer though," Korra replied.

"Hey I got an open door policy, well as long as I'm inside, that is," He said, "See you soon," and he closed the door.

He walked over to the console and sat down. He ran his finger along the edge and looked at it.

"Jeez, it's been less than a day and you're already dusty," he said, "I can't leave you anywhere," he fake scolded his machine.

"I'm kidding, now come on, let's go hit the town." And with that he pulled a few levers, spun some diddly-doos, and pressed a button before gripping the console as it shook with the force of take off.

Korra stood and watched the machine disappear in front of her. She shook her head and wondered just how she got mixed up with such a strange man. Deciding it was time to begin training she walked away to her training area.

Later in the evening Saltrall was sitting inside the TARDIS, listening to the local radio station while he read a book. His attention was ripped from the book when he heard Amon's voice suddenly appear on the radio.

He jumped up and listened to the radio intently.

"...As you have heard, the Republic Council has voted to make me public enemy number one, proving once again that the bending oppressors of this city will stop at nothing to quash our revolution,"

Saltrall used his Sonic to short out the radio.

"Public enemy number one, what the hell is he talking about?" Saltrall asked himself as he set the TARDIS' coordinates back to Air Temple Island. "Tenzin has some explaining to do."

When the TARDIS landed he ran out the door and smack into Korra.

"Ow, sorry, my bad!" He said, holding his nose. He had ran into her back, and she seemed to be knocked out of a trance when he did so.

"What? Oh, hey, welcome back," she said, turning, forcing another smile, "you're fine."

Saltrall nodded and pushed past her and picked up his pace again as he ran into the house, leaving a confused Korra looking after him.

"What the hell did Amon mean by 'Republic Council has voted to make me public enemy number one'?" Saltrall asked, storming into Tenzin's room and slamming his hands on the desk.

Tenzin looked surprised and angry at the intrusion and stood up, keeping his hands in the sleeves of his robe

"I know you're a friend of Korra's but you can't just barge into my office and ask me questions like that without me knowing your name!" he said, glaring at Saltrall, "and besides, why does it matter to you?"

"My name is Saltrallosimozonyith, I'm a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation Kasterborous, I am 603 years old and I'm just here to help,"

"Alright Saltrallo- Saltrall," Tenzin said, calming down, "what do you wanna know?" Tenzin asked, motioning for Saltrall to sit down.

Saltrall sat down took a deep breath, calming down, and thought for a second.

"What happened at the meeting earlier?" He asked

Tenzin sighed and summarized the city council meeting, from his attempts to reason with the Northern Water Tribe representative Tarrlok, to their decision to start an anti-Equalist task force.

Saltrall sat there, nodding slowly before replying.

"Well, Tenzin," he said, standing up, "I'm afraid things just became a lot more difficult,"

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Saltrall," Tenzin said standing up as well, "even if it started less than cordial, you seem to be very knowledgeable, I respect that." He held out his hand and Saltrall smiled and grabbed it and shook it.

"Likewise. And I promise to do my best to help you in any way I can," Saltrall replied, letting go of Tenzin's hand and turning to walk out of the office. He decided that he had to talk to Korra before things became even worse.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter XII: Reunion Part 2

Saltrall went back outside where Korra was, but saw that she wasn't there, so he went looking for her. He searched around for a few minutes before he poked his head into her bedroom. He saw her lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling, and he decided that it would be better to leave her alone. He closed her door and sighed as he turned around, only to be confronted by Naga.

"Whoa, hey there, big girl, you scared me," he said surprised, before patting her on the head.

"Don't worry, I was just leaving," he said, opening the door for her to be with her master.

He went back to his TARDIS and went back into his bedroom to sleep himself.

He awoke the next morning and got ready for the day. After getting ready he took his TARDIS into the city for breakfast. He stopped at a small food cart and bought some food. He sat down to eat and as he was eating it he heard an all too familiar voice.

"Hey Saltrall, long time no see," he heard from behind him, causing him to choke a little.

He managed to get the food down before he replied.

"Asami, hey, yeah, long time," he replied while coughing as she sat down across from him at the the circular table.

"What have you been up too?" She asked with genuine curiosity.

"Oh you know, alien... stuff," he replied, looking down and taking another bite from his meal.

Asami chuckled.

"Alright, I see, playing hard to get," She stood, "luckily for you, I have a meeting to go to, so I'll catch you later."

Saltrall looked up as she turned from him and walked back to her moped that she arrived on, putting on her helmet before driving away. Saltrall just looked blankly where she had been before shaking his head and refocusing on reality.

"Cheese and rice, that was weird," Saltrall muttered to himself, rubbing his neck and sighing.

He looked up just in time to see a mysterious masked man wearing goggles staring at him from about thirty feet away. When the stranger noticed his stare he turned and ran down an alley.

"Yeah, that's not suspicious at all," Saltrall said as he jumped up and began to chase after him. He turned down the same alley as his observer and saw him jump up some boxes onto the rooftop. Saltrall groaned, remembering what happened last time he was in this position, but kept up the chase after him.

The stranger was looking over his shoulder at Saltrall, who stopped and drew his Sonic. He used it to explode a small metal crate that was next to the stranger, making him lose his balance and fall.

"Who are you?" Saltrall asked after he caught up to the stranger, picking him up by his collar.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He replied, spitting in Saltrall's face.

Saltrall didn't even flinch and instead ripped his hood down.

"You're one of Amon's men aren't you?" He asked, noticing a symbol on his goggles "Yeah, the symbol on your goggles gives it away,"

"Clever aren't you, Time Lord?" He asked, still smug.

"Smug little bastard, aren't you?" He drew his Sonic again, "perhaps this will change your tone of voice,"

Saltrall pressed the button freezing his stalker's limbs.

"Ha, Amon knows more about you then you think,"

"Yeah well I've got a message, a little bio, if you will, for him," Saltrall replied.

"Oh yeah, and what's that?"

Saltrall opened his Sonic and placed it against the man's head.

"I don't show mercy to my enemies," He said pressing the button, killing the stranger.

He stood up, closing his Sonic and setting it to search mode. He found a tracking device in his pocket, no doubt so that they could pick him up from his little scouting run, but he left it on. He wanted to send Amon a message: Don't mess with a Time Lord.

Later that evening Saltrall was having dinner with Korra and Tenzin's family. He was leaving to go eat in the TARDIS, despite Tenzin's insistence on having him eat with them, he politely excused himself.

As he was leaving he bumped into Tarrlok, the Northern Water Tribe representative to Republic City. Saltrall looked over his shoulder at him and stopped, quietly walking back to the doorway. He leaned against the wall and listened to the conversation.

"As you may have heard, I am assembling a task force that will strike at the heart of the revolution and I want you to join me." He heard Tarrlok say.

"Really?" Korra asked in surprise.

"What?!" Tenzin exclaimed, leaning forward in shock.

"I need someone who will help me attack Amon directly, someone who is fearless in the face of danger. And that someone is you." Tarrlok said, gesturing to Korra.

"Join your task force? I can't." Korra responded, sipping her drink.

"I must admit, I'm rather surprised. I thought you'd jump at the chance to help me lead the charge against Amon." Tarrlok admitted.

"Me, too." Tenzin muttered under his breath.

That was when Saltrall decided he had heard enough and he turned to head back to his TARDIS. He contemplated what he heard while he walked.

"_A task force to stop the revolution?" _he thought, "_that does not sound like a good idea."_

He entered the TARDIS with a sigh and rubbed his face. He tossed his Sonic in the air and caught it, and he realized that his life just got much, much, more interesting.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter XIII: Challenges

Saltrall was watching the Fire Ferrets from the top row of bleachers inside the Pro-Bending Arena, smiling at their dedication. He suddenly stands when he see's them all fall over after hitting each other, but relaxes when he hears them laughing, chuckling quietly and kicking himself for such a serious reaction.

He started to head down the stairs when he saw Asami walk in as they were huddled up, causing him to stop and watch. He was still too far away to hear anything but he knew something was up when he saw Asami and Mako Eskimo kiss.

"Well, that's a development." He mumbled to himself as he kept walking down, leaning on the railing at the bottom of the bleachers as Mako and Asami walked out.

He saw Korra packing up her bags as Bolin slid up next to her.

"So, Korra. There they go, here we are, all alone in the gym, just you and me, two _alone_ people. Together. Alone." He said, oblivious to Saltrall's presence.

"Not quite alone" Saltrall chimed in, laughing when he saw them jump and look at him.

He jumped onto one of the referee platforms as Korra stood.

"Ah, I gotta head back to the air temple to train with Tenzin. See ya guys!" She said with a wave as she quickly walked out. After she had left the arena Bolin let out a sigh of defeat and sat on the edge closest to Saltrall.

"Ouch, sorry, man" Saltrall said as he got up on the railing of the platform and sat.

"Man, I just don't know why she'd reject me like that." Bolin said, not looking at Saltrall.

"Well in my experience, which is extensive, women are very fickle creatures," Saltrall said, leaning back slightly, "if worse comes to worst guilt her into a date." He said with a chuckle.

Bolin looked up at him. "Are you serious?" He asked.

Saltrall shrugged. "Well, not really," he said standing, "but I know you'll think of something."

Bolin just nodded, a determined look on his face.

"Yeah! I can do it!" He exclaimed as he started to leave, only to stop and turn around when he heard Saltrall.

"Two things, first, your bag," he motioned to Bolin's bag still in it's spot, "second, how the heck do I get out of here?"

Saltrall walked out of the arena and into the bright afternoon sun. He sat on a bench and looked around, trying to think of something to do. Soon he thought about the look he saw on Korra's face when she saw Asami walk in and decided to go pay her a visit.

He walked over to an alley close to the arena and climbed into a large wooden shipping crate that was his TARDIS and set a course for Korra's house. He turned it into a tree and stepped outside and looked around, the White Lotus sentries giving him dirty glares, which he figured was better than trying to kill him, so he waved and walked inside. He used his Sonic to find out where Korra was and knocked on her bedroom door.

"Korra? It's Saltrall, can I come in?" He asked. He jiggled the handle but it was locked. With a sigh he turned to leave but was stopped when he heard the door unlock and open behind him.

"Wait, you can come in." Korra said from the doorway, causing Saltrall to enter, closing the door behind him.

"Are you okay? You looked, I don't know, annoyed? I guess, when you saw Asami at the end of practice." He said, standing by the door as she sat down on her bed.

She shrugged, "I don't know, it just irked me to see her," she said.

Saltrall nodded and said seriously, "you have feelings for Mako, don't you?"

Korra blushed brightly, "No!" She snapped back quickly, looking away from him.

Saltrall chuckled softly, "It's okay to tell me," he said, "I'm over 600 years old, Korra, I've seen how you look at him when you think no one is looking."

She looked back at him, shaking a little.

"Promise not to tell anyone?" she asked, voice shaking a little.

He nodded, moving close and hugging her, she hugged back.

"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me, at least until you're ready to tell him yourself."

She nodded and looked down. "Thank you, Saltrall," she said quietly. He smiled softly and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "That's what friends are for," he replied before walking out.

He closed the door behind him and let out a long breath before walking away, lost in thought. He'd only ever seen that scared twice, once after he consoled her from her nightmare and again when she came face to face with Amon for the first time. He knew he'd never forget the look of pure terror on her face when he got there with Tenzin.

He entered the TARDIS and shut the door behind him. He had plenty of faces of fear in his life, whether they be from his victims, or from the people he saved from deadly situations, even his own in the mirror on occasions, but something was different about Korra's. He sat down on his couch, just by his console, Korra's face from her encounter with Amon suddenly burned into his thoughts.

What was it that made hers stick out so much? He smacked his head, trying to get it out of his head, but to no avail.

"_Could it be because... no, it can't be," _he thought, shaking his head again.

"_I've never had a friend I've worried about so much,"_ he thought again, rubbing his face with a groan.

He'd had many friends over the years, but he was always more of a loner, after all, he'd been hurt before, but the emotional loss he felt holding his dying friend hurt more than any wound he'd ever endured...

He teared up "_If I had been two minutes faster..." _he thought, remembering the awful memory that kept him up for so many nights.

Suddenly a pounding on the TARDIS door jolted him from his thoughts. He wiped his eyes and steeled his resolve before opening the door to find a grinning Ikki standing there. She told him enthusiastically that dinner was ready and that he was free to join him.

He closed the door and followed her, smiling, doing his best to forget the painful memories that lie within the walls of his spacecraft.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter XIV: Rescue

The cheering coming from the inside of the Pro-Bending Arena were so loud that they could be heard from outside on the road. Saltrall had never been to a sporting event like Pro-Bending and he was excited to witness his first match.

He sat down right as the announcer was announcing the Fire Ferrets and their opponents. He watched the match with interest and clapped on occasion. He was never a big cheerer back on Gallifrey and that still held true today. He stood to leave when he saw a familiar figure walking away from him.

"Hey, Asami!" He said as he ran up to her, causing her to turn and smile.

"Oh hey Saltrall," she said, stopping to talk to him, "was that your first Pro-Bending match?"

He nodded, "Yeah, it was an interesting experience."

Asami chuckled just as Pabu hopped onto her shoulder. "It can be an acquired taste," she said, "I was on my way to congratulate Mako and them in the locker room, wanna come with me?"

Saltrall shrugged and followed her to the locker room. They talked about this and that as they made their way to the locker room and Asami smiled when she saw Mako.

"Congratulations, guys! You were so amazing out there." She said as she gave Mako a kiss on the cheek. Saltrall stood back a bit and saw the look Mako and Korra gave each other before Korra went and sat down next to Bolin. Saltrall wasn't really paying attention to what anyone was saying, but he assumed something went well when he saw Bolin grinning from ear to ear.

Eventually they went their separate ways, Asami and Mako going one way, Bolin and Korra going another, leaving Saltrall alone. He walked around for a little bit, enjoying the smells of the various shops when he saw Naga poke her head into a restaurant and roar, followed quickly by the sound of Korra and Bolin laughing from inside, making Saltrall smile, petting Naga as he walked passed.

On his way back to his parked TARDIS he decided to check out the Harmony Tower. He stood at it's base and smiled as he looked up at it before leaning against a pole next to him. After a couple of minutes he decided to head back. As he was walking by an alley he heard a noise and stopped.

"Huh, odd," he said, looking around before turning down the alley. However he failed to notice two members of Amon's Equalists on the rooftops.

He looked around before turning to leave. As he did they jumped down from the roofs and restrained him before he could react.

"What the?" Saltrall exclaimed as he struggled before one of them shoved a rag into his face and he passed out.

Saltrall awoke a bit later, groggy and groaning. He was standing against a wall, and when he tried to move his arms he realized that his wrists were chained above his head. Slowly he began to remember what happened last night. He tried tugging his arms free, but it was no use, then he tried moving his legs and that's when he felt his ankles restrained too. He took in a deep breath, trying to remain calm.

"_Okay," _he thought to himself, "_this hasn't happened in a while."_

He was torn from his thoughts by a large, metal door in front of him opening and a masked figure approaching him. For the first time since he was a child he felt genuinely intimidated, but tried not to let it show.

"Amon," he said flatly, staring at his captor.

"At last we meet face to face, alien," Amon replied, standing in front of him.

"Indeed," Saltrall replied, sizing up Amon, "huh, you're shorter than I thought you'd be."

Amon slapped him hard, causing Saltrall to shake his head.

"Yep, saw that one coming." He said.

"I wouldn't try to crack jokes _Time Lord_," Amon replied, causing Saltrall's eyes to widen.

"How do you know what I am?" he replied, shocked.

Amon chuckled coldly, "Because, you think you're untouchable, and while my men and I might not understand what you are yet, don't worry, we will soon enough."

That statement almost made Saltrall break his façade, but he tightened his face and glared at the masked terrorist.

"Not if I stop you first," Saltrall said, eyes cold.

Amon simply stared back before pulling out his Sonic Screwdriver.

"We've been studying this tool of yours while you slept, it's an amazing little tool." He said threateningly, admiring it.

"Don't you dare try to do anything to it!" Saltrall shouted, anger welling up in him.

"Oh don't worry, I have no intentions of that, it's far too valuable for that, but you will never see it again," he said, putting it in his pocket before turning around, "give him another dose," he said to a man hidden in the shadows.

"Go to hell, Amon!" Saltrall shouted after him before being drugged yet again.

He was awoken a time later to find his restraints being released, causing him in his groggy state to collapse forward, only to be caught by his apparent savior.

"Don't worry, I got you," said the familiar voice as Saltrall looked up.

"Asami, is that you?" Saltrall said quietly, still recovering as she helped him to his feet.

She nodded, "I don't like this whole 'anti-bender revolution' that Amon is preaching, so I decided to try to learn more," She said as she took off her helmet.

Saltrall chuckled, "God, if you weren't dating Mako I would kiss you right now," but then he remembered, "Dammit, he has my Screwdriver."

Asami smiled and held it up, "Not anymore he doesn't."

Saltrall hugged her tight before she could react.

"You've just saved my life," he said, pulling away and taking it before blushing, "Uh, sorry, by the way."

She chuckled, "It's fine, just caught me off guard."

Suddenly they heard a noise outside and the door shaking, followed by someone yelling why the door was locked.

"Crap!" Asami whispered, before looking around, "Go out the window, hurry!" She pointed at a high, open window with boxes stacked up.

Saltrall nodded, "Thank you so much," he whispered back before running over there. As he climbed out he looked back and saw Asami putting her helmet back on and laying down to make it look like a struggle right before the door opened and Saltrall ran off.

He didn't stop until he was in the TARDIS and closed the door. Panting hard, he fell to his knees and looked at his Screwdriver and smiled.

"I don't know how she does it." He said to no one in particular before standing and going to his console.

He put his Screwdriver down and smiled at it again before setting a course for Air Temple Island and grabbing the railing as he took off.

When he got there he got out and looked around, it was early morning but no one was around, not even any sentries. Confused he headed inside, and looked around, still wondering where the sentries were, when he decided to check the meditation pavilion.

When he got there he finally found Tenzin meditating, so he waited patiently for him to finish.

"Master Tenzin," he said respectfully when he stood. Tenzin, surprised, turned around.

"Ah, Mr. Saltrall, I didn't realize you were there, what brings you here?" He asked, with a small smile.

"I was just wondering where all the sentries are, I didn't see a single one outside."

Tenzin looked concerned, "That's not right," He said, "There should always be at least one on duty."

Together they walked back to the main temple, Tenzin in front. When they got back they found several sentries who had just gotten up for their shifts talking to a few sentries who were catching their breath.

"You men, why did you leave your posts?" Tenzin asked as he walked up to them.

"We saw a masked man spying around, so we chased him off, he dove into the ocean and we searching to see if there anymore," one of the out of breath sentries explained.

"Well you should know better than to take everyone from their posts," Tenzin scolded.

"Sorry, sir, it was only supposed to be a few of us," He replied, "Won't happen again."

Tenzin nodded before walking away past Saltrall, who decided to go back to the TARDIS. He sighed and rubbed his face, exhausted, but he couldn't rest yet, he had promised to be at the Fire Ferrets quarterfinal match, so he set a course and flew over.

He got out across the street just in time to see the end of Korra and Mako arguing on the steps of the arena before they stormed in different doors.

"Well, that doesn't look good," Saltrall said before heading in after them.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter XV: Memories

Saltrall walked into the arena after his friends, but they were already off getting ready so he just went up to bleachers and waited for match to begin. He claps when they win the tiebreaker round but he's frowning, knowing something was off today. Quickly, he gets up and heads downstairs to the locker room.

He got there just as they started to leave. He opened his mouth to say something but decided against it when he saw the looks on Korra and Mako's faces. Instead, he grabbed Bolin by his arm and pulled him aside.

"Do you know what's going on with those two?" Saltrall asked him as Bolin looked at him, but he just got a shrug in return.

"I don't know, but I know where I'm going, I'm getting a little something special for Korra to cheer her up!" He exclaimed before hurrying off.

"Um, I'd maybe... Wait..." Saltrall tried to tell Bolin but it was too late, he was already running off. Saltrall sighed, "Ooh boy, I don't like the look of this."

He waited around for Bolin to come back with some flowers, he tried to get his attention but Bolin was too focused, so Saltrall just followed him.

When they got up to the balcony they both saw something that made them stop in their tracks.

"Whoa, didn't see that one coming," Saltrall said as he and Bolin watched as Korra kissed Mako.

Korra saw them first and looked down ashamed, but Mako turned around when he heard Saltrall. Bolin immediately started crying, dropped the flowers and ran off.

"Bolin, this isn't what you think!" Mako shouted after his brother before groaning and turning to Korra, "Great, look at what you did!"

Korra looked insulted, "You're blaming me?" She asked, astonished

"_You_ kissed me!" Mako shot angrily.

"_You_ kissed me back!" Korra shot back. Mako just balled his fists and groaned in anger before running past Saltrall after his brother.

Korra muttered something to herself as Saltrall walked up to her.

"Korra?" He asked cautiously, but she just pushed past him, "Korra?!" He yelled after her, causing her to start running away. "Korra!" Saltrall shouted as he chased after her, only to see her mount Naga and run off.

Saltrall stood there panting for a second before running off in pursuit. He was about to give up when he heard Naga whimpering and looked towards the sound, where he found Korra holding her tightly and crying.

"Korra..?" Saltrall asked nervously, slowly approaching, only to stop when Naga snarled at him.

"Easy girl, it's just me," Saltrall whispered, holding out his hand, "You know me," he softly touched her head, and she begrudgingly laid her head down, still glaring but allowing Saltrall to crouch next to Korra.

"Korra, what happened back there?" He asked, but all he got in a response was more tears and Korra hugging him tightly.

He let out a soft "oof" but hugged her back softly, letting her cry into his shoulder.

"Shhh, it's okay, it's okay," He whispered, trying to calm her down. She kept crying and she grabbed the back his sweatshirt in her fists. Saltrall kept whispering and trying to calm her down. After about fifteen minutes she calmed down enough to talk.

"I- I don't know what happened," She said, sniffling, "I just... let my emotions take over."

Saltrall nodded empathetically. She wiped her eyes, not looking at Saltrall's face until he gently lifted her chin, when she saw him smiling softly with sympathy in his eyes.

"We all do things like that sometimes," Saltrall replied.

"I've never done anything like that, though," Korra said, "One second we're arguing the next second we're kissing, then you and Bolin showed up out of nowhere."

Saltrall didn't say anything, he just rubbed her back until she pulled away and sighed. She blushed when she saw the large stains her tears had left on Saltrall's sweatshirt.

"Um, sorry about your sweatshirt," She said, with a hint of embarrassment.

Saltrall looked down and chuckled, "Don't worry about it," he replied, "a few tears never hurt me."

He regretted saying those words, those, because he immediately remembered a painful memory from his past and lost his smile.

"What is it?" Korra asked, seeing his expression change. Her comment brought him back to reality.

"What? Oh, sorry, it's nothing I'm fine," He lied, standing and helping her up.

"Thanks for calming me down, I'll try not to let tonight affect my play tomorrow," Korra said, getting on Naga, "Come on, I'll drop you off at your TARDIS."

Saltrall smiled and got on and they rode back to where he parked his TARDIS.

"_Giorgio!" Saltrall shouted as he ran into the room where his best friend was being restrained, only to quickly be grabbed by the throat by a Cyberman. He let out a choke and stared into the lifeless eyes of his adversary._

"_All Time Lords must be deleted." The Cyberman said, aiming his arm at Giorgio, who was trying to break free from his bonds._

_Saltrall was trying desperately to grab his Sonic weapon but he was thrown against the wall and dazed by the Cyberman._

_He shook his head just in time to see the Cyberman shoot his best friend once in the chest._

"_NOOOO!" Saltrall shouted as his friend began to glow, starting the regeneration process._

_The Cyberman fired again before he could finish and Giorgio slumped lifelessly in the chair he was tied to._

_Saltrall was trying to stand when the Cyberman pressed his hand against his chest._

"_You must be deleted." He said as he fired._

"NO!" Saltrall shouted as he shot up in his bed, sweating hard and panting. He looked around and realized it was just a nightmare.

"Every damn time. I was so close." He said putting his head in his hands. He tossed his blankets off of him and put on a pair of pants and a shirt before exiting the TARDIS, now safely back on Air Temple Island, and looked around. He saw the usual sentries and so he walked to a cliff overlooking the ocean and sat down.

He let out a long sigh and waited for his heart to slow down. He didn't even remember how long he'd been having that nightmare, all he knew was that he'd never stop reliving that day. The only reason he was still alive was because another Time Lord distracted the Cyberman long enough for it to be destroyed as he used his third regeneration, turning into his current form.

He ran a hand through his hair and stared up at the moon.

"I'm so sorry Giorgio," He whispered as he let his tears flow down his cheeks.

He stayed there like that for at least a half hour before standing and wiping his eyes and cheeks and walking slowly back to his TARDIS with his head down, not wanting anyone to see him in such a weak and vulnerable position. When he got back to his TARDIS he closed the door and sat down on the couch before laying down, falling into a state of restless sleep.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter XVI: Battle

Saltrall stirred and groaned, only getting a few more hours of sleep. He stretched before standing and going to the bathroom. He glanced at the mirror over the sink and grimaced at his reflection.

"I look terrible," He said to himself as he walked over and put his hands on the edge of the sink.

He had dark bags under his eyes, his eyes still had a small amount of red from his crying, some tears he missed had dried on his cheeks, leaving small streaks and his hair was a disheveled mess.

He just sighed and showered quickly. He got out feeling slightly better but it wasn't anything substantial. He got dressed again and set his coordinates to the arena and flew over there.

He got out and looked around, seeing quite a few less people. He swore under his breath when he heard the cheers from inside and ran inside, knowing the match had already started.

The first round had just ended when he got to a spot he could watch, and he put his head in his hands as the second round ended. However, when Korra won single-handedly in the third round he couldn't help but grin from ear to ear.

"That's the Korra I know," he whispered as he turned and headed towards the locker room.

He looked into the locker room as Korra was healing Bolin's injured arm. Smiling, he walked inside.

"Everyone still friends here?" He asked as they all looked at him and laughed.

"Yep, still friends," Korra said with a smile before looking at the brothers who nodded in agreement.

"Excellent!" Saltrall exclaimed happily. His smile faded, as did all of the others, when they heard the announcer.

"Your winners, the Wolfbats!" came the announcement from the ring.

"What? How is it over already?" Korra asked in disbelief, before they saw the other team being dragged from the water on stretchers.

"Cheese and rice," Saltrall muttered as he looked at the shocked faces of the Fire Ferrets.

They all seemed to gulp in unison before Korra got a determined look on her face.

"This just means we need to practice extra hard!" She exclaimed, with the others all agreeing.

It was a few days before the Fire Ferrets next match and they spent almost all of that time in the arena practicing. Saltrall came and watched a few, but he was more focused on looking out for Equalist threats. He'd killed a couple of grunts sent out by Amon and incapacitated a few more, but he knew that they weren't a serious threat. Not like last time.

But today was the day of the finals, and Saltrall was watching the Ferrets practice in the gym, smiling at their intensity.

"_Reminds me of when I was involved in sports on Gallifrey,"_ He thought to himself. He was dragged from his thoughts when the radio they were listening to turned to static. Saltrall, who was leaning on the table and therefore the closest, turned it up as Amon's voice rang out.

"Good morning, citizens of Republic City. This is Amon," He began, "I hope you all enjoyed last night's pro-bending match, because it will be the last. It's time for this city to stop worshiping bending athletes as if they were heroes. I am calling on the council to shut down the bending arena and cancel the finals, or else there will be severe consequences."

"What a creep," Saltrall said, turning down the radio when his message finished.

"That guy's got some nerve," Bolin said in agreement.

"You think the council will give in?" Mako asked, looking at everyone. Korra spoke up first.

"I'm not waiting to find out. We need to get to City Hall."

Everyone else voiced an agreement and they ran out and hopped on Naga and rode quickly to City Hall.

Korra got off quickly and ran inside, followed by Bolin and Mako, but Saltrall stayed outside, and he watched police chief Lin Beifong walk by. She scowled at him when she saw him, obviously still bitter about the last time he was in the police station for attacking a police officer hiding in some shrubs doing reconnaissance.

"_Good to see she hasn't forgotten that,"_ He thought to himself with a small smile as she too walked into City Hall. He kicked a rock until he saw Tenzin walk out, looking embarrassed followed by the Fire Ferrets.

"So? We still on for tonight?" He asked them as they walked over.

"You know it!" Bolin said proudly. Saltrall nodded silently, his smile faded as he started thinking. "You alright?" Bolin asked.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine just... thinking," Saltrall replied before looking at Korra, "A word, please?" He asked, motioning his head to the side and walking over, Korra following, confused.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Saltrall asked when they got a safe distance away.

"Absolutely, Chief Beifong is going to provide extra security so nothing can happen, it was her idea to keep it on." Korra replied, making Saltrall chuckle.

"Somehow I assumed as much," He said, still chuckling before getting serious again.

"Listen, I need to tell you something," Saltrall started before being interrupted by Korra.

"Sorry, I gotta get back, need to keep practicing, I'll see you later!" She said as she turned and ran off, leaving Saltrall alone.

"God dammit," He muttered under his breath. He sighed and watched her leave with the others before walking off towards the TARDIS.

That night he was watching the match, standing close to Tenzin and Lin, listening to them discussing the match and the various fouls not getting called on the Fire Ferrets. Right after the match ends and Tahno starts gloating, Saltrall notices something.

"That's not good..." He said as he saw people in the audience start putting on Equalist masks.

He drew his Sonic inconspicuously and flicked it open, set to paralyze. He opened his mouth to tell Tenzin and Lin before looking over them just as they got electrocuted by members of the Equalists. Thinking fast he paralyzed them and any other Equalists who came near him, even having to kick one away right before he was electrocuted. When he looked around he saw that he was surrounded by seven paralyzed Equalists.

Content with his work he put his Sonic away and looked at the platform, just in time to see Tahno have his bending taken away.

"Holy crap..." He whispered under his breath as Amon and his men kicked them into the pool before addressing the crowd.

"I believe I have your attention, benders of Republic City." He began, looking out at the audience.

"So once again, the Wolfbats are your pro-bending champions. It seems fitting that you celebrate three bullies who cheated their way to victory because every day, you threaten and abuse your fellow nonbending citizens just like the Wolfbats did to their opponents tonight.

" Those men were supposedly the best in the bending world and yet it only took a few moments for me to cleanse them of their impurity. Let this be a warning to all of you benders out there: if any of you stand in my way, you will meet the same fate." He paused before continuing.

"Now, to my followers: for years the Equalists have been forced to hide in the shadows, but now we have the numbers and the strength to create a new Republic City. I'm happy to tell you that the time for change has finally come. Very soon, the current tyrannical bending regime will be replaced by a fair-minded Equalist government. You and your children will no longer have to walk the streets afraid! It's time to take back our city."

Saltrall stared on with anger before moving Lin and Tenzin until they're sitting against the wall as Amon continued his speech.

"For centuries, benders have possessed an unnatural advantage over ordinary people. But thankfully, modern technology has provided us with a way to even out the playing field. Now anyone can hold the power of a chi blocker in their hand. My followers and I will not rest until the entire city achieves equality, and once that goal is achieved, we will equalize the rest of the world. The revolution has begun!"

With that an airship dropped ropes, shattering the ceiling as Amon and his men started to leave the arena.

Suddenly he saw Korra fly up into the air on a pillar of water, only to lose her resolve and start falling.

"Korra!" He shouted, not noticing Lin moving to help her.

Saltrall had never felt more powerless then he did watching the fight on the roof of the arena. His heart skipped a beat again when he saw Korra falling down for a second time, only to feel a pang of relief when Lin got her to safety.

He started running over to where they were as the Fire Ferrets hug. He was too far away to hear anything said before, but he arrived just in time to hear Tenzin's grim proclamation:

"Republic City is at war."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter XVII: Adventure

Saltrall woke up early the next morning because he could barely sleep last night. He spend all tossing and turning, trying to think of ways he could've done more to stop Amon. Finally he just gave up and got up.

He sat on his couch twirling his Sonic between his fingers, still thinking.

"_If only Korra had listened to me!"_ He thought to himself, remembering yesterday right after they left City Hall.

With a sigh he stood up and put his boots on before stepping out into the crisp morning air. He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly before smiling and looking around the natural beauty on the island.

"You know, I could get used to this." He said to himself as he walked over to a cliff overlooking Republic City in the distance and admired the sunrise which had turned the sky shades of pink and yellow.

"Like it?" Said a female voice behind him, and he turned around and saw Korra standing behind him with smile.

All he did was nod and he turned back towards the cliff as she walked up next him.

"I mean, I've seen stars supernova and I've stood on comets, but there's always something so..." He paused, trying to find the right word, "peaceful about seeing nature early in the morning." He finished, looking back at the city.

Korra kept smiling.

"So you really have seen some incredible things, haven't you?" She asked, and Saltrall nodded, "It's funny, after everything I've seen from you, I've still been a bit skeptical."

Saltrall looked over at her and smiled, "Wanna see something incredible?" He asked her and he looked towards the horizon away from the sunrise, pointing to a dim star "I can show you that up close."

Korra just looked at him, shocked.

"Are you serious?!" She asked, making Saltrall grin.

"Race you to the TARDIS," He said, making Korra grin before they sprinted off back towards the ship.

Saltrall got there first and threw the door open and ran in just before Korra, and they both started laughing as they caught their breath.

"Sit on the couch and hold on to something, this may get bumpy." Saltrall said as he slid in front of his console and started twisting knobs and pulling levers.

He turned around and looked at Korra, who was holding onto the arm of the couch.

"Ready?" He asked, putting his hand on a lever. Korra grinned and nodded in return. "Then here we go!"

Saltrall pulled the lever as he said the last word and grabbed the railing as the TARDIS jolted around as it took off. Eventually it calmed down as they started flying. Saltrall flipped a few switches and looked at his monitor before hopping the railing and sitting next to Korra on the couch.

"We got a few minutes, got anything you wanna talk about?" Saltrall asked, looking at her. Korra thought for a few seconds before replying.

"Tell me about yourself, Saltrall," She said. Saltrall laughed in response.

"I'm 600 years old, it'll take awhile to explain," Saltrall replied, laughing, "besides, I want to hear about you first."

Korra just nodded and started explaining her life story. Right as she finished the TARDIS jolted softly.

Saltrall stood up and stepped under the railing in front of the console.

"Good, we're here." He said as he checked the monitor. He pulled a couple of levers and tapped a dial. Content he walked over to the door.

"Ready?" He asked Korra as she walked over.

"As ready as I'll ever be!" She exclaimed with nervous excitement. Once Saltrall opened the door, however, her jaw dropped.

In front of them was a large, deep red star with many small meteors orbiting it as the TARDIS stayed a safe distance away for it's shield to protect them.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Saltrall asked, looking at Korra, who just nodded silently, mouth still agape, Saltrall smiled, "I love this view, space is one of the few places I can escape to."

"This... this is the most amazing thing I've ever seen." Korra said, finally getting control of her mouth back.

Saltrall blushed lightly and looked towards the star. Korra looked at him with a smile, but soon looked concerned when Saltrall's smile faded a little.

"What's wrong?" She asked as he started walking back towards the console. Saltrall let out a small sigh and messed with some knobs.

"Space is beautiful," He replied, "But I've seen parts of it that I wish I could forget, and sometimes it's hard to forget that." He sighed and looked towards the floor, "Sorry for killing the good mood."

Korra closed the door and walked over, putting a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look over at her.

"There are things no one wants to see, but what's important is seeing the beauty first." She said, looking him in the eyes.

Saltrall smiled a little and looked back at his console. "Yeah, you're right," He said, adjusting spinning a small handle and typing coordinates into the console. "Hold on," He said as he pulled a lever and sent the TARDIS back to Earth.

When they landed Saltrall walked Korra to the door and opened it for her. He still had a small smile on his face but had a hint sadness in his eyes.

"Thank you, Saltrall, that was incredible." She said as she stepped outside.

"It was my pleasure." He replied with a hint of solemness still in his voice. Korra patted him on the shoulder one last time before she started walking away. She had gone about 30 feet when she remembered something.

"Hey!" She shouted back at him, making him look at her, "You never told me your story!"

"Next time, Korra, don't worry." He replied before closing the door.

Once he was alone he sat down on the couch and sighed. Running a hand through his hair, he began to lose himself in thought.

He was feeling feelings he hadn't felt in what felt like centuries, he thought, but he was in denial as to what they were.

"_I can't be... can I?" _He thought as he stood up, "_I can't be falling in love with Korra..."_

He decided to go for a walk to try to think more clearly and to clear his head. He walked around the island for a long while before looking up and realizing it was almost dark out. Deciding it was better to stop thinking about it and just try to relax, he started back towards the TARDIS. However, at the same time he had a feeling something bad was going to happen soon, so he ran back into his TARDIS.

Once he was inside he started getting things ready, including his Sonic, a special rubber undershirt to protect himself, and his old Guard staser that he'd kept for centuries. He took a test shot on both the lethal and nonlethal settings, just to make sure it still worked. Content, he looked at the clock.

"Crap, it's 1:30 already!" He said as he ran up to the console, he overheard Tenzin saying he was going to the Sato mansion for something, and the radio said the police had searched Sato factories but found nothing. Figuring it was his best lead he punched in the coordinates and pulled the lever.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter XVIII: Emotions

Saltrall landed in the front yard of the Sato mansion and grabbed his psychic paper as he stepped out, a look of determination on his face, hoping that would make him look like he belonged there. He was immediately confronted by two police officers who were watching the perimeter..

"Hey! This is a secure area, you can't be here!" One of them said, walking up to him.

Saltrall ignored them and held up his psychic paper as we walked past them. The officer who looked at the paper just shrugged when his partner gave him a quizzical look and they didn't try to stop him.

Saltrall didn't drop his determined face until he was sure they wouldn't try to stop him and he looked at the paper.

"Huh, interesting," He said before putting the paper away, "I guess I'm a gardener now."

Saltrall saw some officers standing by the back of the house and he hurried over and walked into the workshop. Just as he entered Lin motioned for some of her officers to go down a set of stairs in the floor.

"Wait, I'm coming with you." Saltrall said with determination in his voice.

"Saltrall, what are you doing here?" Both Tenzin and Korra asked in unison while Lin sighed and stared at him.

"I'm here to help of course." Saltrall said as he walked up to them with Asami, Bolin and Mako looking on.

Lin sighed, "Alright, Mr. Time Lord, but don't think I've forgotten about your last little "adventure" through my city."

Saltrall just smiled. "Awww, and here I thought you forgot about that, Chief!" he replied, laughing at her annoyed expression, "Come on, you know I'm a good guy."

Lin just rolled her eyes but Saltrall caught a glimpse of her smiling as they went down the stairs and into a tunnel.

They reached the bottom and walked into a large room full of large mech-like tank suits. Saltrall looked around as Lin and Tenzin talked when suddenly large metal walls shot up on all sides of the room, blocking them in.

Saltrall ran up to the closest one and was scanned it with his Sonic. He was about to say something when he was interrupted by Asami's father, Hiroshi.

"I'm afraid you won't be able to metalbend that wall, Chief Beifong. It's solid platinum. My mecha tanks are platinum as well." He said from inside one of the tanks. "Not even your renowned mother could bend a metal so pure."

Saltrall looked around at the tanks as they started closing in on them and the battle started. He tried to use his Sonic on the machines while the others bended, to basically no avail, and they were too large for his Screwdriver to have any effect.

Suddenly he saw Lin get thrown across the room and knocked unconscious. Getting desperate he drew his staser pistol and fired at the nearest tank in front of him, stunning the pilot, he was aiming at Hiroshi's tank when he was picked up from behind and flung into a nearby wall, he grunted as he impacted it but it knocked him unconscious and he fell to the floor.

When Saltrall regained consciousness he was lying on a bench in an airship. He sat up and groaned, holding his head. He looked around and saw Tenzin standing next to Lin across the aisle and he saw the others standing nearby.

He was still slightly groggy but he heard Tenzin and Lin talking, but couldn't make anything out. Looking over at the others he saw Mako walking over to Asami and her burying her face into his chest as Korra looked away sadly, before looking over at him.

"Hey, Saltrall's awake," She said as she hurried over to him.

"Yep, still kicking, sorry Lin," He said with a chuckle, looking over at the metalbender, making her smile at him.

"Actually I'm glad you made it out okay, Saltrall," She replied, throwing him for a loop as she'd never used his real name, only the title Mr. Time Lord, which he'd told her the first time he was brought into an interrogation room.

"Really?" Saltrall replied, "I won't lie, I honestly thought you hated me 90 percent of the time."

Lin chuckled softly, "We've had our... disagreements, yes," She said, "But as you said I do know how good you are fighting, and I'm glad you're on our side."

Saltrall smiled and nodded at her before standing slowly and shakily.

"Good, nothing's broken," He said, moving his arms, hands, and fingers.

Korra looked relieved and hugged him softly, catching him completely off-guard, but he slowly hugged back.

"I'm glad you're okay," She said, pulling away, before blushing and turning away.

Saltrall just stood there, dazed for a minute before recovering and smiling softly before noticing Bolin staring at him with a sad gleam in his eye, which he tried to hide when he realized Saltrall saw him. Saltrall nodded his head to the side and started walking away, with Bolin slowly following.

"You okay?" Saltrall asked quietly, even though they were out of earshot of everyone.

"What, of course I am, I'm great!" Bolin said, faking a large smile. Saltrall looked at him with an unamused face, causing him to sigh and look down in dejection.

"I don't know, man, I like Korra so much, and seeing her kiss my brother and then hug you, it's really hard." He said, looking up.

Saltrall nodded, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, Bolin, really, it's natural" Saltrall said as Bolin stared at him. "I'm over 600 years old, I've been in your spot before"

Bolin looked surprised, "Really? What happened?" He asked the Time Lord.

Saltrall shrugged, "Nothing, I moved on, eventually we went our separate ways and that was that. It's hard, but I know you'll get over it, you're strong, Bolin, never forget that." Saltrall said, grinning when he saw a determined expression come across his friend's face.

"Yeah, you're right!" He said, "Thanks Saltrall, you're the best," He said, hugging him tightly.

"Ow, can't breathe!" Saltrall gasped out, causing Bolin to let go, giving him a sheepish grin of apology before they both broke into laughter.

Saltrall went back to the Sato mansion with Lin to get his TARDIS after they had dropped off the others back on Air Temple Island. He offered to give her a ride but she declined, he just shrugged and teleported back to Air Temple Island.

It was later that night when Saltrall shot up in bed again, screaming as he was woken up by the same nightmare that seemed to haunt him every night. After his tears had mostly cleared up he got dressed and stared at himself in a mirror for a few minutes, scared and frustrated before he went outside to walk and clear his head, only this time he saw that he wasn't alone when he left his TARDIS.

"Korra? Is that you?" He asked as he walked closer.

Korra froze, obviously not expecting anyone to be up.

"Saltrall, hey, why are you-" She started as she turned, but stopped when she saw the wet streaks on his cheeks, "Have you been crying?"

Saltrall's eyes widened when he realized he'd forgotten to wipe his face, but lowered his face in shame before nodding.

"What happened?" Korra asked again, walking up to him. Saltrall simply walked away to a cliff and sat down, staring at the ocean. Korra took a seat next to him, looking at him with concern. Slowly he started to speak.

"I had a nightmare," He began, "It's a nightmare, I've been having it for a long time, but I cry every time."

Korra looked concerned and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Can you talk about it?" She asked softly. Saltrall was quiet for a minute before telling her the story. He explained it in detail and talked about regeneration and other details so she understood.

When he finished Korra put a hand over her mouth.

"That's... that's awful." She said, shocked, "How long have you been reliving that day?"

Saltrall swallowed hard. "450 years." He said, holding back tears. "Ever since that day I..." He chuckled softly, "I haven't been the same. Physically, emotionally, anything. That's the problem with regenerating," He looked at her, tears falling down his cheeks "The face changes, but the memories never leave. Sometimes all I can do is cry and wish it would go away." As he finished he broke down and started crying again.

Korra remained silent before hugging him. This time Saltrall hugged back. Korra just sat there with the weeping Time Lord, letting him cry as she quietly comforted him until his tears stopped falling.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter XIX: Tension

Saltrall couldn't remember the last time he'd lost track of time, if ever, but that night he did. He just sat there with Korra for what could've been minutes or hours, but eventually he calmed down and stood up.

"Th-thank you," Saltrall said quietly as he looked away, not fully trusting himself to look at her.

"Hey," She said, tilting his head so he looked at her while smiling softly, "That's what I'm here for."

Saltrall smiled softly and she helped him up and they walked back to the TARDIS in silence. When they got back they hugged again before Korra said goodnight and started walking away.

"Korra wait," Saltrall said, making her turn around.

"What is it?" She asked, seemingly expecting something.

Saltrall hesitated, keeping himself from saying "I love you" and instead he sighed and said, "Sleep well, Korra."

Korra's face softened and she nodded, "You too, Saltrall." She said before turning and continuing on her way.

Saltrall closed the door and slumped with his back against it. His mind and heart were both running at speeds he didn't think healthy, he took a deep breath and tried to relax.

"Okay, Sal, okay," He whispered to himself, "You done good, kid." He thanked the stars quietly that he had held his tongue at the last second and didn't say what he wanted to. As he sat there the exhaustion hit him full force and he stood, going back to his bedroom.

Korra closed her door behind her and sighed. She was starting to have an emotional crisis and she didn't know what to do. On one hand she had long since fallen for Mako and knew she would do anything to be with him. And yet? There was just something about Saltrall that she saw tonight. She didn't see him as an alien, she saw him as human.

Almost ever since they'd met he'd done everything he could to come off as either fun-loving, serious, or protective of her and the rest of their friends. That night she had seen a side of him that she never would've guessed he had a year ago when they first met at the Southern Water Village. She had expected him to say he loved her when she started walking away from the TARDIS, and she was actually prepared to say that she loved him back.

She laid down with a groan, not knowing what to do. Eventually as she started drifting off to sleep she decided to do her best not to think about it, at least for the time being.

The Saltrall who woke up was completely different from the one who went to bed. He was much happier, which confused Korra when she too woke up.

"Saltrall, are you alright?" She asked when she heard him humming softly outside his TARDIS.

"Hm? Oh yeah, I feel great, why do you ask?" He replied, looking at her with a smile.

"Well, you know, after last night I just thought you'd be tired and you know," She said before making an exaggerated annoyed face.

Saltrall laughed before saying, "When you've been dealing with this for as long as I have you get certain..." He moved his hands a little, trying to think of the right words, "je ne sais quoi, I guess,"

Korra looked surprised, but also slightly nervous.

"Alright..." She said, giving him an uneasy expression as she turned to walk away.

Saltrall sighed and rubbed his face, his happy demeanor fading.

"Besides," he said much softer, almost dejectedly, making Korra turn to look at him again as he shrugged and scoffed, "what else can I do? I don't want to dwell on it, so I just try to be happy,"

Korra smiled softly, "I understand," she said, grabbing his hand, "Come on, let's go wait for the others to arrive."

Saltrall hoped his blush wasn't too noticeable when she grabbed his hand, but his smile was. She let go as they started walking, which was okay with Saltrall, he didn't want anyone to get any ideas.

"You know, I almost forgot they were moving in today." Saltrall said as they walked to the dock, making Korra laugh.

They stood there with Tenzin's kids and waved at the people on the ferry. After they departed the ferry they all hugged and talked for a bit. Eventually Korra, Asami, and Ikki went to show Asami her room while Bolin and Mako were led to the men's dorms, leaving Saltrall alone in front of the main building. He walked over to his TARDIS and went inside, however there was a knock shortly after he closed the door. When he opened it he was surprised to see Tenzin standing there.

"Oh, Master Tenzin, I wasn't expecting to see you here." Saltrall said, suppressing a smile when he caught a brief glimpse of shock on Tenzin's face when he saw the inside of the TARDIS, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Hrm, yes, sorry, I was caught off guard by how large the inside of your... craft, is it?" Tenzin asked, looking at Saltrall, who nodded, "is"

Saltrall chuckled, "I get that a lot," He said, "Anyway, what can I do for you?"

"Well," Tenzin began, "I know you have a vested interest in capturing Amon just like us, and Beifong's successor as Police Chief is being inducted later, I was hoping you'd join Korra and I."

Saltrall just smiled and nodded, "I'd love to go."

A few hours later the crowd outside the police headquarters was thinning and Saltrall, Tenzin, and Korra were going to confront Tarrlok by the stage.

"Tarrlok, I don't know what you did to get Chief Saikhan in your pocket but I highly doubt it was legal." Tenzin said accusingly when they finally confronted him.

"Oh, Tenzin." Tarrlok said as he turned to face them, "Always the conspiracy theorist. Did you ever consider Saikhan simply recognizes my talents and wants what is best for this city?"

This comment made Tenzin grunt in disgust and Saltrall roll his eyes as Korra stepped forward.

"Well, Avatar Korra. Long time, no see. Now that your little pro-bending distractions are over, I look forward to your return to my task force." Tarrlok said to her.

"Ha! Forget it! There's no way I'm rejoining your vanity project." Korra said, folding her arms in front of herself.

"That is unfortunate to hear, but I'm sure you'll come to your senses as you have in the past." Tarrlok replied.

"Don't hold your breath, bub." Korra started, pointing at him, "You know, Tenzin's been right about you all along." She pointed at herself, "You played me, you played Beifong, and now you're playing the new Chief too." She walked up to him. "Well, I got news for you. You need me, but I don't need you. I'm the Avatar."

"You're not, in fact, the Avatar." Tarrlok retorted, shocking Korra a little. "_You_ are merely a half-baked Avatar in training, which reminds me, how is your airbending going?"

That comment made Korra even more dejected, as evidenced by her sad expression, making Saltrall glare at Tarrlok.

"Made any significant progress with that?" Tarrlok continued mocking her smugly.

Korra looked down in defeat and Saltrall grabbed his Sonic inside his sweatshirt pocket.

"I didn't think so." Tarrlok finished with a smug smirk on his face, making Saltrall growl, which finally got Tarrlok's attention.

"Oh, are you going to do something about it?" He asked, still sporting a smug expression.

"If you don't walk away now I might just," Saltrall growled angrily. Tarrlok just shrugged and turned to walk away, finishing angrily.

"If you will not be part of my task force, Korra, then you had best stay out of my way." He said as he walked away.

Tenzin put a supporting hand on Korra's shoulder while Saltrall pulled out his Sonic and pointed it at a small rock by Tarrlok. He made it bounce up and hit Tarrlok in the face, making him turn and glare at them. This time it was Saltrall staring back smugly as he closed his Sonic and put it in his pocket without turning away from the angered waterbender.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter XX: Fighting Back

Saltrall sat in silence and listened to Tenzin and Korra discuss her airbending as they flew back to Air Temple Island. He decided not to say anything because he had a very small knowledge base of airbending and didn't think it appropriate to ask questions.

Later that night Saltrall was walking around the island, enjoying the early night breeze when he came to a cliff. He smiled at the statue of Aang, the previous Avatar. After they got back to the island he had spent a long time learning what the Avatar is and what they do with Tenzin, who he learned was Aang's son. His smile faded when he looked over and saw a crying Korra sitting on a cliff about a hundred feet away.

He was about to yell to get her attention when he heard Mako and Bolin calling for her and saw them come through some bushes with Pabu and Asami. He frowned slightly when he saw them talking to her and he made his way back to the TARDIS solemnly.

With a sigh he sat on the couch, but instead of moping he decided to do something useful and help Korra and her friends. He got to his console and adjusted some knobs before pulling the lever and teleporting into Republic City.

Korra and her friends saw and heard the TARDIS disappear and they looked at each other, confused.

"I wonder where Saltrall's going," Asami said looking at the others, "Do you guys know?"

They all shook their heads and set off on their own to patrol Republic City as well. Saltrall meanwhile was getting out and locking the door behind him. He had landed on a rooftop and was wearing his rubber undershirt as well as his staser in a holster and his Sonic screwdriver.

He was looking through a pair of binoculars when he heard noise behind him, it sounded like boots hitting the roof along with conducting electricity. Turning quickly he blocked an Equalist as he tried to electrocute him. Saltrall punched him in the gut and ran to the side, when he saw four other Equalists charging him. He stopped and the five of them surrounded him.

"Well, now things get interesting," Saltrall said with a smirk as he drew his Sonic, "Who's first?"

An Equalist ran at him and he paralyzed her with his Sonic. Two others came at him next. He punched one and grabbed the other one's arm, putting his Sonic against his arm and activating it. The grunt yelled in pain as his arm shattered and Saltrall grabbed his head and pulled it down as he kneed him in the chin, causing him to fall into a heap. Saltrall grunted when one of the other grunts hit him in the back and he elbowed him in the face, his rubber shirt keeping him from getting electrocuted.

"Nice try, but rubber is a terrible conductor," He said with a smirk as he drew his staser and shot him, not sure if it was set to stun or kill, the grunt crumpled in a heap nonetheless.

Saltrall ran at the first Equalist who tried to attack him and grabbed him in a headlock, pressing his Sonic to his head he destroyed his brain and tossed him off into an alley below. He turned to the final Equalist, the one he paralyzed and punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground because her legs were frozen. He turned to look for the last one, but he was running off, so Saltrall let him go. He looked back at the female Equalist, unfroze her legs and left her there with the others who were unconscious before turning his head when he heard a car engine roar past below.

He ran to the edge of the building and grinned when he saw the others chasing after a truck full of Equalists in one of Asami's cars. Not wanting to miss out on the chase he jumped across the street and landed on an awning and jumped up onto the roof while frightened citizens screamed below him, causing him to look down.

"Sorry!" He shouted at them apologetically before chasing after the cars. He saw smoke rising in a long trail and followed it until he heard screeching tires and saw a street light fall over. Fearing the worst he jumped another roof and looked down before laughing.

"Good job, guys!" He yelled as he saw the Equalist truck on it's side and the surprised faces on his friends as they grinned and yelled up at him. He sees reporters starting to show up and he used his Sonic to make the TARDIS materialize next to him.

"Whoa, how'd you do that?" Bolin shouted up to him with a glint of awe in his eye.

Saltrall smirked, "Sorry, Time Lord secret, Bolin!" He yelled down at him before seeing cameras getting set up. "I'll see you guys back on the island!" He shouted as he waved goodbye and got in the TARDIS making it disappear just as Tarrlok approached the Avatar and her friends on the street below.

Saltrall was leaning against his TARDIS, waiting for the others to get back. He grinned when he saw them arrive and walked up to them.

"Good job, guys!" He said as he hugged all of them.

"Thanks Saltrall," Korra said as she hugged him back. Their hug lasted slightly longer than the others, which made Mako scowl a little, but nobody noticed.

"So what exactly were you doing in the city, Saltrall?" Mako asked, "we saw you leave but you didn't tell us where you were going."

Saltrall nodded, "Decided to go for a solo run. Got attacked by a few, and by a few I mean five, Equalists, nothing big."

They all expressed their shock when he said that.

"What?! Are you okay?" Bolin asked.

Saltrall just laughed. "I'm fine, guys," He said lifting his sweatshirt, "rubber undershirt, poor bastards didn't stand a chance."

Mako shook his head, "But how did you handle FIVE all by yourself?" He asked.

Saltrall smiled softly. "Years of experience fighting things much scarier and tougher than a few grunts." He replied, his smile fading slightly as he sighed. "I'm not proud of a lot of it, but I did what I had to do."

There was an awkward silence as Saltrall looked around.

"I figured that was coming, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to put a damper on a good mood." He said, turning to go to his TARDIS.

They all started trying to get to him to stop but he had already started to walk away. He finally stopped and turned when someone grabbed his wrist. He turned to see that Mako had come over and stopped him.

"Hey, come on," He said softly, "You didn't do anything wrong."

Saltrall stopped and nodded. "I'm sorry," He replied and they walked back over to the group. "There's something I haven't told you guys."

"What is it?" Korra asked with concern in her voice.

Saltrall took a deep breath before looking at his friends.

"I have a rare Time Lord condition called situational pentamood disorder," he began, "Basically, it's like bipolarism but much worse because instead of my mood changing between manic and depressed I go from myself to basically being a different person if certain things happen.

"Say one of you got hurt and I saw it, I'd probably get incredibly angry, like, 'not stopping until everyone is dead' angry, and then as soon I calm down I'm back to myself."

Asami nodded slowly. "I understand," she said, "but at the same time that sounds like a normal human response, I mean maybe to an extreme, but it sounds like you're just protecting people you care about."

Saltrall just shrugged, "It might be, but when I was growing up I was told that it's a defect in a Time Lord's brain, a defect that harms not only myself but the people around me too. It also causes severe depression under the right conditions so, you know, all good things."

He sighed again and looked down, not wanting to see his friend's faces, that when he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Bolin smiling at him.

"That's what friends are for, to help you get through dark times." He said, trying to reassure the Time Lord.

That made Saltrall smile and look at them. "You're right, Bolin, thanks guys, so so much." He said as he looked at everyone, again pausing a little longer while looking at Korra, making her blush lightly.

Bolin grinned, "That's the spirit, now come on, let's celebrate a good night's work!"

The others all exclaimed in agreement and they walked inside the dining hall.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter XXI: Kidnapped

It was mid-afternoon the next day and Saltrall was talking with Mako while watching some of the Air Acolytes and Korra practice. Saltrall laughed at something Mako said when he saw Tenzin coming back from a council meeting with a stern look on his face, and Mako must've seen him too.

"That doesn't look too good," Mako said, nodding towards Tenzin. Saltrall nodded in return.

"I'll go see what happened," Saltrall replied as he started to walk off, but Mako grabbed his arm and he looked back at him.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" He asked, "No offense, Saltrall, but you haven't been here very long and Tenzin barely knows you, heck, all of us barely know you."

Saltrall nodded, "I know," He said, "Hopefully all will be revealed in time, though."

Mako let go of his arm. "I hope you know what you're doing, pal," He said, patting Saltrall's shoulder.

This made Saltrall chuckle, "Don't worry, so do I."

Mako laughed and shook his head softly. "You're something else, Saltrall."

Saltrall smiled and started walking towards Tenzin's study, leaving Mako to watch the airbenders practice alone.

Korra walked over just as Saltrall walked away, taking a break from her practice, and she looked over as he walked by.

"Where's he going?" She asked, turning to Mako when she stopped.

"He has to talk to Tenzin about something," Mako replied, still looking in the direction Saltrall walked away in before looking at Korra.

They continued talking as Saltrall knocked on the door to Tenzin's study.

"Master Tenzin, may I come in?" He asked through the door. He heard moving inside and Tenzin opened the door.

"Ah, Mr. Saltrall, how may I help you?" Tenzin asked, stepping out of the way as Saltrall stepped inside.

"I saw that you looked a bit grim coming back from the meeting, I assume the council acted like fools again?"

Tenzin didn't answer, he nodded softly and sat behind his desk as Saltrall sat across from him.

"Saltrall, I don't mean you any offense when I say this," Tenzin started, putting his elbows on the desk, "But you're not from around here and I just don't know why someone as, well, young as you should have any interest in politics that don't affect you."

Saltrall smiled knowingly, assuming he'd get that response before standing.

"Master Tenzin, I don't believe I've ever properly introduced myself in all my time here," He started as he held out his hand, "My name is Saltrallosimozonyith, I'm a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey, in the constellation Kasterborous, I'm over 600 years old and I am stuck in your world with no way out."

Tenzin looked shocked before slowly shaking Saltrall's hand.

"I... I had no idea you were that old," Tenzin replied, sitting down and trying to fully process what he heard.

Saltrall smiled and sat as well, "I've been around, you could say, and I've been here over a year and I've been studying up on events and happenings almost that whole time, so if you'd please tell me what happened, I'd be very grateful."

They ended up spending a long time talking, first about the council meeting and then Tenzin asked Saltrall many questions about himself and the Time Lords. At one point Korra popped her head in and asked Saltrall if he wanted to come with her and the others and go into the City, but he declined, instead deciding to continue talking with Tenzin.

A few hours later Korra returned. "Tenzin!" She yelled as she ran into his study.

Tenzin stood up, "What is it?!" He asked, voice full of concern. Saltrall stood up as well.

"Tarrlok's arrested Mako and the others!" She said, panting, "We have to get them out!"

"Calm down, Korra," Tenzin replied, trying to calm her, but she ran out saying she had to get to the police station.

Tenzin sighed and started to get things ready. "It appears I'm going to the police station," He said, turning to Saltrall, "But it has been good talking to you."

Saltrall smiled, "Likewise, Master Tenzin." He said, bowing slightly.

With a smile and a nod Tenzin left the room.

Their efforts to get Mako and the other members of Team Avatar came to nothing and Korra came back visibly upset. Later that night Saltrall was walking around outside as snow fell. He always enjoyed a little snow, which is why he decided to go for a short walk. As he was walking he heard noise from around the temple and he drew his Sonic, just in case. Instead he saw Korra getting on Naga.

"Korra?" He asked, surprised, "What are you doing?"

She jumped slightly in the saddle before turning to face Saltrall.

"I'm going to have a little talk with Councilman Tarrlok," She said sternly, a look of determination on her face.

Saltrall looked worried and walked up to her.

"Are you going alone? Do you want me to come with you?" He asked, standing next to Naga, "It could be dangerous."

Korra shook her head and looked out at the city.

"Sorry, Saltrall, this is something I have to do myself," She said, looking back at him.

"Okay, I understand," He said nodding in understanding, he put a hand on her shoulder, "Stay safe, okay?" He finished, concern and fear in his voice and eyes.

Korra saw that fear and almost changed her mind about going alone, but held firm.

"Thank you, Saltrall, I will" She said, trying to give him a reassuring smile. He didn't say anything in response and just watched as she turned and rode off.

He was waiting in his TARDIS for over half an hour when he had a feeling something had gone wrong. He looked at the time and rubbed his arm nervously.

"She should be back by now," He said to himself as he sat at the console. Deciding to go against her wishes he set coordinates to city hall and pulled the lever.

He stepped out into the large hall and looked around. He knew something was wrong immediately when he saw obvious signs of a battle. He kept looking around and saw Tarrlok putting an unconscious Korra in the back of a truck.

"Tarrlok!" He shouted as he stalked into the room where they were. Tarrlok turned and smiled evilly at Saltrall.

"Ah, Saltrall," He said, putting his hands behind his back, "Somehow I knew I'd see you here,"

Saltrall stopped about 20 feet in front of him and held up his Sonic. "Let her go, you monster," He demanded.

Tarrlok just laughed and crossed his arms in front of his chest and smirked. "Or else what? You'll call the police? I own the police now."

Saltrall started walking towards him, still pointing his Sonic at him. "No," he said, "I'll become the police."

Suddenly Korra came to and heard Saltrall's voice. "Saltrall, no!" She shouted, "He can bloodbend!"

Saltrall looked confused and let his guard down for a second. This was all Tarrlok needed and he moved his arms. Suddenly, Saltrall felt all of his veins and arteries burn as if they had caught on fire.

"GAAAH!" He shouted, pain coursing through his body as he felt his arm being lowered to his and being forced to his knees by Tarrlok, who walked up to him.

"You've made a huge mistake, _alien_," Tarrlok said, adding a hateful tone when said alien, before galring at the waterbender, "Never get in my way."

Saltrall glared back. "You're the one who's made a mistake, Tarrlok," He replied before groaning in agony as Tarrlok bended his blood again.

"Oh really, and how's that?" Tarrlok replied.

Saltrall panted softly, "Because you messed with me and you messed with my friends, and for that I promise you, I will hunt you down if it's the last thing I do."

Tarrlok laughed and bended Saltrall into the air, "If you come after me I promise it will be the last thing YOU do."

Saltrall just stared daggers into Tarrlok's eyes and tried moving his arm. He found that he could move it slowly, but it was too late, Tarrlok tossed him aside and into a nearby pillar and turned away.

"Saltrall!" Korra shouted as he hit the pillar, and Tarrlok closed the doors, got into the truck and drove away.

"I'm sorry, Korra," Saltrall whispered as he struggled to breathe and fought to remain conscious.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter XXII: Jailbreak

Saltrall groaned and pushed himself with one arm, staring at the back of the truck as it drove away. He stood on shaky legs before trying to run after it but collapsed again. He panted softly before grabbing the wall and standing.

"Don't worry, Korra, I'll get you back, I promise." He said softly and he stumbled back to the TARDIS, groaning softly as his blood started flowing normally again.

He sat down in front of the console and let his body recover from the bloodbending. He looked at his arm, the one he moved a little while he was being bended and wondered if that was normal for someone being bloodbended.

After only a few minutes he felt better and teleported back to Air Temple Island. He put on the brakes and stood in a hurry, wanting to wake up Tenzin and begin the search as soon as possible, but as soon as he stood he felt weak and collapsed again before passing out, his head hitting his chair as he fell.

He had no idea how long he had been out but his eyes opened slowly and he rubbed his head softly, throbbing a little and he stood. He opened the door and shielded his eyes from the morning sun.

He stepped out and saw Pema standing and looking out at Republic City with worry on her face.

"Pema, is Tenzin here? I need to tell him something," Saltrall asked, concerned as he walked up to her.

She looked over at him and shook her head, "No," she said, "He's already at City Hall, something terrible happened last night,"

Saltrall cursed under his breath, "Trust me, I know, that's why I need to find him," He said as he turned and ran back to the TARDIS.

He slammed the door shut and ran to the console before putting in the coordinates for City Hall and pulling the lever. He put on the brakes and stormed out as he landed, no longer caring who saw him walk out of whatever the TARDIS camouflaged as this time. He ignored the shocked faces of several passersby and stormed into the hall just as Tenzin was walking out. Saltrall looked past him and saw Tarrlok sitting on the floor inside the Hall.

"Tenzin, I don't know what Tarrlok told you, but I know what really happened to Korra." Saltrall said with intensity.

"Saltrall I know you mean well but I have to believe what Councilman Tarrlok says this time." Tenzin replied, looking at the time Lord.

"No! He's the one who kidnapped Korra!" Saltrall replied pointing at the Councilman.

Tenzin's eyes widened slightly, but not for the reasons Saltrall hoped.

"You're accusing a Councilman of kidnapping the Avatar? I know they don't get along but he has reason to, and you have no proof!" Tenzin replied.

"No proof?!" Saltrall shouted, taken aback by that accusation, "I was there! I watched it happen!"

Tenzin just sighed and kept walking, making Saltrall almost pull some of his hair out. He sighed in defeat and dropped his arms to his sides just as two police officers grabbed him.

"Hey! What's going on?" Saltrall asked, looking at both officers.

"You're under arrest for slandering Councilman Tarrlok," One of them said. Tenzin heard this and turned around.

"What? There are no slander laws in place here! You have no legal basis to hold him on those charges!"

The cops just laughed. "He just walked out of a street light, you can't honestly believe that he's sane, can you? We're doing him a favor!"

Saltrall tried to struggle but he knew it was no use. He sighed and was resigned to his fate as he heard Tenzin behind him.

"Don't worry, Saltrall, I'll get you out!" Tenzin shouted as the cops dragged Saltrall away.

Saltrall just sighed and kept walking. He was led to and shoved into a cell that held Mako and Bolin.

"Saltrall?! What are you doing here?" Bolin asked the officers shoved him in the cell and slammed the door shut behind him.

"Oh you know, just getting arrested, average Tuesday afternoon." Saltrall replied sarcastically, "No, I'm sorry, apparently I'm 'insane' and 'it's for my own good'" He said, adding air quotes for emphasis.

"What? Why would anyone think that?" Bolin replied, making Saltrall blush and look away.

"I... may have walked out of a street light in broad daylight and called a Councilman a bleeding liar." He mumbled, under his breath.

Bolin broke out laughing while Mako stared at Saltrall before putting his face in his hands in embarrassment.

Saltrall looked at them. "Look, in hindsight, really stupid move, I get that, but I was frustrated and I had to talk to Tenzin and I just didn't care about people seeing me,"

Mako had a look of confusion on his and was about to speak when Bolin spoke up.

"Um, guys, I really got to use the bathroom." He said, sheepishly.

Mako and Saltrall slowly turned and looked at him before they sighed and said in unison,"Go in the corner."

"Uh, can you guys turn around?" He asked sheepishly. They sighed did as he asked, "Thanks."

About a minute passed and Bolin hadn't finished and Mako asked him if he was done yet, as he did Saltrall went over to the door and used his Sonic on the lock just as Lin and Asami walked up.

"Oh, hey guys," He said as he opened the door and Asami ran in.

"Hey Asam- Oh for God's sake," Saltrall started, only to look away when she locked lips with Mako.

Lin walked in and stood next to Saltrall, rolling her eyes a little at the display before saying, "Hate to break up your lovers' reunion, but Korra's in trouble. Amon captured her."

Saltrall spoke up, "Heh, actually," he started with a nervous chuckle, putting his finger up "Tarrlok captured her, not Amon,"

Lin and Mako stare at him with shock, "No. No, she can't be gone!" Mako said in horror, causing Asami to look at him strangely, "And how do you know Tarrlok has her?" Lin asked Saltrall.

"Funny story about that, see, I was there," Saltrall replied, "Korra said she had to talk to him, in the middle of night, on the down low, you know the usual, I got worried and I saw him put her in the back of a truck and I tried to stop him, but he was too strong for me," He thought about mentioning the bloodbending but figured they wouldn't believe him.

Lin rubbed her chin, "This changes everything, do you know where they went? Have you told Tenzin?" She asked, turning to Saltrall.

"No and yes, but he didn't believe me, then I got thrown in here for being 'insane'" Saltrall replied.

Lin groaned, "That straight edged old git," She muttered, putting her fingers on her temple, "Do you think he could've given her to Amon?"

"It's possible," Saltrall replied, "Come on, let's go see Tenzin, he might believe you, Lin."

They all ran out of the room and headed back to find Tenzin.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter XXIII: Blood For Blood

The five of them walked into Tenzin's office as he was on the phone with someone, and the look on his face when they walked in nearly made Saltrall bust out laughing.

"I have to go. Call me back the minute you hear anything." Tenzin said as he hung up the phone and stood up, incredibly surprised, "Lin? Wh-wh-what are y- You should be in the hospital!" He asked before pointing at the others, "And you four! You should be in prison!"

"I figured you could use our help finding Korra." Lin said flatly before motioning towards Saltrall, "And our friend the Time Lord says you didn't believe him about Tarrlok."

"W-well, at the time it seemed completely wrong to think he did it!" Tenzin replied defensively before sighing and putting his head down in defeat.

"Saltrall I must apologize for not believing what you said, I should've trusted your word" He said, looking at the Time Lord.

Saltrall just smiled softly, "It's alright Tenzin, I forgive you" He replied before looking at a map behind Tenzin, "However, we still have to find her,"

They eventually decide to go check out the Equalists first, just in case, and make their way to the underground tunnel system the Equalists use. Saltrall suggested they split up but Mako pointed out that they had no other leads, so they all went to the tunnel together.

Lin metalbended the gate open and they began walking through the dark tunnel, Mako and Saltrall lighting the way with firebending and Sonic Screwdriver.

"Let's try this way." Mako said, pointing down a tunnel when they reached an intersection.

"And what if Korra's not down there?" Asami asked?

"Then we pick another tunnel until we find her!" Mako replied sharply. Saltrall turned around and saw a hurt expression on Asami's face as she went and walked next to Bolin. Saltrall fell back too, saying he would light up the rear in case they missed something. Instead he walked with them to see what they were talking about.

"Hey, is Mako all right?" She asked, "He seems really worried about Korra."

"Yeah, we all are!" Bolin agreed, nodding slightly.

"I know, but, he's your brother. Do you think that he likes Korra as more than just a friend?" Asami asked, stopping and looking at Bolin. Saltrall stopped as well, looking at both of them.

"W-What? No! That's, just gossip, where'd you hear that?" Bolin said, his voice getting higher pitched, "Crazy talk is coming out of your mouth right now. Heh..."

Saltrall just shook his head a little and dragged his hand across his neck, trying to tell Bolin to stop.

Asami put a hand on Bolin's shoulder, "What do you know, Bolin? Come on, spill it."

Bolin put his hands up defensively, "Nothing! I mean, there was this one time during the tournament when Mako and Korra kissed, but-"

Saltrall groaned and facepalmed as Asami interrupted Bolin.

"They ... kissed?" Asami asked in shock, looking at Mako's back.

"Believe me, I was upset too, but, I'm over it. I don't think it meant anything." Bolin replied, trying to shrug it off.

"I doubt it," Asami said, visually upset. Suddenly Saltrall drew his Sonic and froze Bolin's mouth closed.

"Okay, Bolin, grave's only need to be six feet deep, you can stop digging yours deeper now," He said patting him on the shoulder.

Asami looked at him shocked, "You knew too?!"

"Dah, well, I mean, I was there so I guess... Yes?" Saltrall said shrugging his shoulders guiltily.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Asami demanded, "You didn't ask!" Saltrall replied defensively, "I mean if you had just walked up to me and asked, 'hey, Saltrall, you're a swell guy, tell me, have Mako and Korra been making out behind my back?' well, I'd say no because they haven't, but if you asked me if they'd kissed once I'd have said yes." He rambled off, trying not to dig his own grave any deeper.

Asami just glared at him before they heard motorcycles approaching and they all hid. Soon they came across a tram tunnel and they all hopped on one but jumped off midway through the tunnel.

Lin used her metalbending to rope the two guards into the tunnel and pointed at Asami, Bolin, and Saltrall.

"You three, keep an eye on them." Lin ordered as herself, Tenzin, and Mako moved further into the prison.

"Hey, whoa, no, I'm coming with!" Saltrall said as he hurried after them, trying to get as far away from Asami as possible after Bolin's revelations in the tunnel, but he stopped and unfroze Bolin's mouth first.

"Don't get yourself killed," He told Bolin as he pointed at him authoritatively before running after the others.

By the time he'd caught up Mako was interrogating an Equalist.

"I'll ask you one more time," Mako said angrily, igniting his free hand, "Where is she?"

Saltrall pulled him away from the Equalist, "Easy Mako, I'll handle this." Mako sighed but stood down, meanwhile Saltrall pulled out his Sonic and held it to the man's head.

"Now, tell me where she is!" He said, opening it.

"We don't have the Avatar, and the Equalists didn't attack City Hall. Tarrlok's lying." The Equalist said, terrified for his life. Saltrall smiled.

"Oh, I already knew that, I just don't get to do that very much anymore," He said, standing and looking at Lin, "Man that feels good, now I know why you did it to me so often."

Mako sighed and shook his head while Lin rolled her eyes and they all began to make their way out of the tunnel when they confirmed Korra wasn't there.

After fighting their way out of the tunnel they made their way back to city hall to confront Tarrlok face to face. When they arrive Chief Saikhan is waiting, but Tarrlok is nowhere to be seen. Soon he walked up behind them.

"Have you got news of Avatar Korra?" He asked as everyone turned to face him.

"We do," Tenzin said angrily, pointing at him, "You kidnapped her, Tarrlok!"

"I am shocked you would accuse me of such an evil act! I already explained: Equalists attacked us and took her!" Tarrlok said, his voice teeming with apparent innocence.

"Bullcrap!" Saltrall shouted, pointing a finger at Tarrlok.

There was a small back and forth before a voice came from above.

"It's true! He took her!" The council page said from behind a pillar on the balcony, "I was here when Avatar Korra arrived last night, but Councilman Tarrlok ordered me to leave. I was on my way out when I saw Tarrlok bring her down to the garage."

"That is nonsense!" Tarrlok shouted as he pointed at the page, "Everyone knows you're nothing but a squeaky-voiced liar!"

"Why did you wait until now to 'fess up?" Lin asked him as she folded her arms across her chest.

"I was terrified to tell because..." The page began, looking down, but Saltrall spoke up before he could finish.

"Because Tarrlok is a bloodbender!" He said with anger in his voice, pointing a finger at the councilman.

Tenzin turned to Tarrlok, "Don't make this worse for yourself." He said, taking his airbending stance, "Tell us where you have Korra."

"No, Tenzin, wait!" Saltrall said as both him and Lin bended at Tarrlok, but they all groaned and fell to their knees as he bloodbended them, all except Saltrall, who was ready for it this time.

"What? How are you still standing?!" Tarrlok asked, shocked, putting more focus into his bending.

"Because, GAHHH!" Saltrall began, crying in pain, "I'm a Time Lord, I'm not like you," He said as he started to take a few steps towards Tarrlok, trying to raise his Sonic.

Tarrlok stopped him, however, by making him drop his Sonic and forcing him to his knees. Saltrall kept fighting and, as all the others fell unconscious, he kept trying to crawl towards Tarrlok, only to be thrown against the desk as Tarrlok fled, thinking he had knocked Saltrall unconscious as well.

Saltrall remained conscious, however, and crawled over to his Sonic.

"You won't get away that easy," He said to himself, picking it up. He looked around and found a stray hair of Tarrlok's and picked it up.

"Bingo," He said, scanning it, before standing on shaky legs, he couldn't stay up and he collapsed against the desk. He dragged himself up and used it for support. Taking a few deep breaths and using his Sonic, he made his TARDIS materialize nearby. He walked over slowly and shakily, but eventually opened the door and collapsed inside. He crawled to the console and used the railing to pull himself into a chair.

"Now," He said, pulling out his screwdriver's power core and sticking it into a spot on the console, "Let's find out where you're running off to now you piece of crap..."


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter XXIV: Stress and Memories

Saltrall grinned when he got the GPS lock on Tarrlok from his hair. He watched the dot that represented him heading up a mountain towards a small cabin near the top.

"Bingo," He whispered as he began inputting the coordinates. "Hang on Korra, I'm coming." He said, pulling a lever and taking off.

He landed quickly and his TARDIS became a pine tree, he looked around on the monitor but sighed in relief when he saw he beat Tarrlok. He got out quickly and, with his Sonic by his side, carefully made his way into the cottage. He scanned it with his Sonic and found that there was a large box in the basement. He knew there could only be one thing in it and he ran for the stairs.

"Korra?! Are you here?" He asked anxiously.

Korra stood up inside the box at the sound of his voice. "Saltrall?" She asked with a scared tone of voice.

"In the flesh," Saltrall joked, before sighing in relief as he ran down the stairs before stopping in front of the box. "God, it's so good to hear your voice again, Korra,"

Korra smiled, not that Saltrall could see it, "It's good to hear yours, too." Saltrall smiled and started trying to unlock the door with his Sonic.

"Come on, almost-" He started before stopping and looking towards the door, turning off his Sonic. "What's-" Korra started to ask before getting shushed by Saltrall.

Saltrall heard a door close and he knew it was the front door. He put his Sonic away and looked for a place to hide.

"I have to hide, don't worry, I'll be right here, stay calm," Saltrall whispered hurriedly before running over and hiding behind some crates by the stairs.

"My life is a disaster now, thanks to you." Tarrlok said furiously as he came down the stairs and looking at Korra's box.

"So your little bloodbending secret's out?" Korra asked a little smugly, making Tarrlok growl and start walking out, "And I know how you bloodbent me without a full moon." Korra continued, making him stop, "You're Yakone's son."

"I _was_ his son, but in order to win Republic City, I had to become someone else." Tarrlok said, not looking at her, "My father failed because he tried to rule the city from its rotten underbelly. My plan was perfect. I was to be the city's savior. But you, you ruined everything!"

Korra just laughed, "Come on, you know I didn't work alone!"

Tarrlok growled in response, "Yes, and the next time your little _alien_ friend shows his face I'll make sure he never sees you or anyone he cares about ever again!"

This time it was Saltrall's time to growl. It was soft, barely audible, pointing his Sonic at Tarrlok. He took some deep breaths and calmed down, but he left his Sonic pointed at Tarrlok.

Tarrlok just chuckled a sinister chuckle, "Not that it matters, of course," He started, finally turning to Korra, "I'll escape and start a new life. And you're coming as my hostage."

"You'll never get away with this!" Korra yelled, pounding on the door of her box. She was terrified, even with Saltrall right there she was worried about what Tarrlok had said, and she hoped he stayed calm and didn't reveal himself.

Korra shut up, however, when she heard Tarrlok gasp from the top of the stairs.

"Amon!" Tarrlok said, shocked at seeing the Equalists inside the box, and Saltrall heard Korra gasp while his eyes widened.

"Crap crap crappity crap crap crap," Saltrall whispered and pressed himself against the side of the staircase where he was hiding.

Saltrall heard a struggle until he saw Tarrlok back up and watched in horror as Amon took his bending away, turning away and trying not to listen to the screams of Tarrlok. Amon tossed Tarrlok over his shoulder and turned from the box.

"I'll take care of him. You four retrieve the Avatar. Do not underestimate her. Electrocute the box to knock her out before you open it." Amon ordered the other Equalists. Saltrall took advantage of the opportunity and quickly placing a clear protective barrier around the box.

Saltrall watched as the Equalists surrounded the box and hoped his protective layer protected her. Then he saw one of her armbands pop over one of the bars in the roof of her box and he smiled as the box was electrocuted and as she pretended to be electrocuted.

He stood when they opened the door and Korra attacked them, intending to help her, but she handled them all before he could do anything.

"Huh, good job Korra," He said, coming out of hiding and looking at their bodies. He was gonna say something else but Korra nearly tackled him in a hug.

Saltrall grinned and hugged her back just as tightly.

"God I missed you," Saltrall said, "We all did."

She smiled, "Thank Saltrall, It's great seeing you again." She said, "I'm gonna make a run for it, can you get your TARDIS and meet me somewhere?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," He started, making Korra smile before kissing his cheek and running out of the room, "But, I... can..." He said as he watched her before sighing. He summoned his TARDIS and ran into it as the Equalists started getting up.

Saltrall sighed again, "Why did she have to run? Hell, why didn't I just summon you here, girl?" He said to his TARDIS, rubbing the console. He got a lock on Korra's position and he pulled the lever. As he did that he realized that even though Korra smiled and hugged him in obvious relief she still had fear in her eyes. He shook his head and opened the door to look out for her. It turned out to be the perfect moment as without even realizing it Korra flew in and hit the arm of the couch.

"Korra!" He exclaimed, running up to her, but she was out cold from the impact. He got on one knee and picked her up and laid her out on the couch, covering her with a blanket.

He looked outside and stepped into the cold. He saw he had landed on the side of the mountain, and he waited against the side of the TARDIS, hoping that he would be able to signal for help. He thought about what he had seen inside, not only Tarrlok losing his bending but also the fear in Korra's eyes even as she smiled and hugged him happily. He'd seen looks like that before, on Gallifrey and elsewhere, as he fought near the end of the Great Time War. It was a look of pure fear and he knew that Korra would be dealing with this experience for a long time.

He shook his head trying to push those memories and thoughts back into his head when he heard movement. Standing and wielding his screwdriver he relaxed when he saw it was only Naga.

"Hi girl," He said, putting his Sonic down and petting her head. Naga let him pet her before she looked up and howled. Saltrall looked at where she was howling at and grinned when he saw a flying bison and knew who was on it. He waved his Sonic with the tip illuminated so that Tenzin could see them better as the bison landed.

"You have no idea how happy I am to see all of you!" Saltrall exclaimed as Tenzin, Lin and the others got off the bison.

"Where's Korra?" Mako asked with intensity in his voice, causing Saltrall to clench a fist unconsciously.

Saltrall heard the TARDIS door open behind him and he turned "I'm here, don't worry," Korra said from the doorway.

"She's right there," Saltrall replied with a hint of bitterness meant for Mako. Tenzin and Lin ran up to her and started asking her questions and making sure she was okay.

Saltrall walked over to Asami as Mako pushed them aside and picked her up and carried her towards Oogi the bison. Saltrall saw the pained look on Asami's face and put his hand on her shoulder and she looked at him before smiling very softly and looking down. Saltrall looked back towards the saddle of the bison and saw Mako pushing some hair from Korra's face. He sighed softly and looked back towards the others, wondering what would happen next.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter XXV: Confessions and Memories

Saltrall and Asami were standing in the doorway to Korra's room, watching Mako as he sat next to her bed. They both saw Mako put his hand on Korra's softly, and Saltrall looked at Asami, who just put her head down in sadness and walked away. Saltrall watched her before clenching his jaw slightly and turning back to Mako.

"Mako," He said, making the firebender look at him. He motioned with his head into the hall, wanting Mako to follow, but he just shook his head. Without saying anything Saltrall entered the room and pulled up a second stool.

"We need to talk," Saltrall said, sitting down and looking at Mako, who still had his hand on Korra's.

"Is it about this?" He asked, looking at his hand.

"Partially," Saltrall replied, "Okay a lot, actually,"

Mako sighed, but didn't move his hand. "Lay it on me," He said, looking at the Time Lord, "Or are you opposed to it?" He asked with a tinge of suspicion.

Saltrall ignored that and crossed his arms, staring at him intently. "Why are you doing this to Asami?" He asked quietly but with a hint of bitterness, "Have you seen what you've been doing to her?"

Mako was silent and looked away.

"I'm not trying to guilt you, but I want you to know this," Saltrall continued, turning Mako's head to look at him, "I've seen a lot of pain in my life, and the looks I've seen on Asami's face aren't fake pain or sadness for sympathy; they're real. She cares about you, Mako, she really does, and I do too, I care about all of you."

"What are you saying?" Mako asked sadly.

"I'm not asking you to do anything dramatic or life threatening," Saltrall replied, "But if you want Korra you need to end things with Asami before the pain becomes too much for her."

Mako nodded softly and Saltrall gave him a pat on the shoulder before standing. He was in the doorway before he turned around.

"One more thing," He said, causing Mako to turn around again.

"I've seen pain and fear on Korra's face tonight," He said seriously before giving Mako a threatening glare and he finally let a hint of anger boil in his voice, "If I ever see either of looks on her face again, and it's your fault, I will hunt you down, and I promise you, you do not want that"

He pulled out his Sonic for emphasis before walking out, leaving a shaken Mako alone with Korra.

Saltrall spent the next long while alone in his TARDIS, pacing and thinking, occasionally sitting, but mostly standing and pacing as he was unable to relax. His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door and he opened it to find Korra standing there.

"Oh, hey Korra, are you feeling any better?" He asked, smiling softly at the surprise visit.

"I'm doing okay, may I come in?" She asked, not fully maintaining eye contact with Saltrall. He nodded and stepped out of the way, letting her step inside.

He closed the door as Korra went and sat on the couch with a small huff. Saltrall looked concerned and stood against the railing across from her.

"You sure you're feeling okay? I can do a medical scan if you'd like." He offered grabbing his Sonic, but he put it down when she shook her head.

"No, it's okay," She assured him weakly before taking a deep breath, "I don't know what to do about Mako."

Saltrall sighed and nodded.

"I thought that may be the case, What do you want to do?" Saltrall asked seriously, crouching down so his eyes were level with hers.

"I..I don't know," Korra replied with a hint of defeat in her voice, "I mean, I have feelings for him, and I know he has feelings for me he just doesn't admit it because he's dating Asami,"

"Not for long he won't be," Saltrall muttered under his breath, "What?" Korra asked, only hearing him say something, "Nothing," Saltrall replied quickly.

Korra sighed again and Saltrall put a hand on her shoulder.

"Well I'm sorry I can't help you more, Korra," Saltrall said, standing and turning around, climbing under the railing onto the console platform.

"Saltrall?" Korra started before hesitating, "Have you ever... loved anyone?"

Saltrall stopped what he was doing and stared at the TARDIS' core for a second before replying.

"I have," He said, tightening his grip on the railing, "Many many years ago, at least it seems like it was,"

"Are you comfortable talking about it?" Korra asked cautiously as she stood.

Saltrall was quiet for a minute, steeling his resolve and taking a deep breath before replying.

"On Gallifrey I was never that popular," He began, "But there was one woman whom I had a relationship with.

"Her name was Zenkathrupsasorund, she was one of the most beautiful Time Ladies I'd ever seen," He chuckled softly before continuing, "Anyway, we were in a relationship for a few years, and they were probably the best of my life, but all that changed when the Time War began."

"What's the Time War?" Korra asked quietly.

"The war for the sake of all creation between my people and the Daleks, who wanted to destroy everything that wasn't a Dalek." Saltrall replied solemnly, "Much like the genocide that destroyed the airbenders for you, but on an immeasurable scale,"

Korra nodded as he continued.

"I did my part in the War," Saltrall said, "I fought the Daleks and came home to Zenkath every chance I could, but one day the attacks started to increase on other planets, so we went off to a planet, I have no idea what it's called anymore, and we kept fighting."

Saltrall started tearing up, "We were on a patrol when the Daleks ambushed us. I was the only survivor. Zenkath was next to me when she was hit by a Dalek death ray. I finished off the Daleks but I held her in my arms as she died,"

Tears were falling down his cheeks and he closed his eyes, "Ever since that day I've done everything in my power to keep from falling in love, so that I never have to experience that again, and hopefully I never force anyone to experience something like that either."

Korra put a hand on his shoulder but didn't say anything, not knowing what to say. Saltrall put his hand on hers and wiped his tears with his free hand.

"There's something about Time Lord physiology I haven't told you," He said, looking at her, "We Time Lords have two hearts, and on that day both of mine broke."

She hugged him from behind and he sighed before pulling away. She looked at him with sadness in her eyes as he fiddled with the console.

"I was doing so good too," He said softly, "I never felt love like that again. Then I came here."

"What do you mean?" Korra asked, thinking she knew where this was going.

Saltrall turned around and looked right at Korra. He saw a certain something in her eyes, he couldn't explain but he knew what he had to say.

"Korra, I-" He began when he heard distant explosions outside. He looked at the door and instantly his sadness was replaced with intensity, "That doesn't sound good," He said as he grabbed his Sonic and ran outside with Korra in close pursuit.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter XXVI: Retreat

Saltrall and Korra ran out of the TARDIS and ran up to Lin in the courtyard as she told the airbender kids to go back into the house.

"We heard explosions, what's going on?" Korra asked as the others ran out to see what was going on, too.

"Republic City is under attack." Was all Lin said in reply.

"We need to get over there, come on, let's take the boat," Mako said, turning towards the dock.

"No, it's too slow, let's take my TARDIS," Saltrall replied, looking back over at it.

"Are you crazy? We can't all fit inside that!" Bolin exclaimed, looking at the large rock that was the TARDIS.

Saltrall just smirked and grabbed Korra's arm and they ran back to the TARDIS, leaving the others no choice but to follow. Saltrall used his Sonic to open the door and they all ran in.

"Right, first things first we to find a good place to land," Saltrall said as he jumped in front of the console, "Anyone have any-" He started, turning to look at the others only to see them looking around in aw.

"Yes, yes, I know, spit it out, we're kind of in a hurry!" Saltrall said, trying to hurry up the inevitable.

"It's bigger on the inside than the outside!" Bolin shouted, his eyes filled with excitement.

"Yes, welcome to my ship; Time And Relative Dimensions In Space, or TARDIS, now stop gawking, we have a city to save!" Saltrall said in a hurried, slightly annoyed tone, scanning the city on his monitor. Finally finding what he was looking for he ran around the console and pulled the lever.

Everyone grabbed onto things as the TARDIS shook and took off. Saltrall began grabbing things from around the room, including his staser and undershirt as the TARDIS landed.

"Right, let's get to work," He said, grabbing his Sonic and walking out the door, followed by the others.

Team Avatar ran to a car that was rammed into a pole while Saltrall looked around.

"Hey, you coming Saltrall?" Asami shouted back at him from the driver's seat, "You go ahead, I'll catch up!" He shouted back. Asami smiled and nodded knowingly and they sped away.

Saltrall looked around before running off in the opposite direction, towards the police station. He ran inside just as the power went dead and he stopped, panting, before drawing his Sonic and using it as a flashlight. It wasn't until he stopped that he noticed smoke pouring out the vents near the ceiling.

"Fan-bloody-tastic," he mumbled to himself as he put an arm over his nose and mouth.

He heard people coming towards him and pointed his Sonic in that direction but relaxed when he saw Tenzin and some policemen emerge from a smoke filled hallway surrounded by an air pocket.

"Tenzin! Man, I'm glad to see you," Saltrall said as they came over.

"Saltrall, what are you doing here?" Tenzin asked as he walked over.

"Oh you know, just out on the town, wanted to drop by," Saltrall replied sarcastically, "No, I'm here to help, come on!" He said as he turned and ran back to the door with the others close behind him.

They ran out but stopped quickly as there were 6 mecha tanks closing in on the entrance.

"Mecha tanks, it's always mecha tanks!" Saltrall exclaimed as he looked at all of them.

The tanks attacked them and captured the policemen and Saikhan. Tenzin and Saltrall tried to fight them but were soon overwhelmed. Tenzin was knocked out and being carried to a truck while Saltrall was distracted by some of the tanks. He was becoming desperate when he saw Asami and the others arrive in the nick of time.

"Thank God!" He exclaimed before he noticed an Equalist charging him.

Saltrall quickly drew his staser and shot the Equalist in the chest and he collapsed in a heap. He smirked softly and helped the others fend off the last of the tanks.

When the situation was dealt with Saltrall walked over to the group.

"It's a good thing you got here when you did," He said, looking at all of them, "we were in a bad place.

Asami smiled and nodded, "Anytime," she said before looking over at Korra, who was rushing over to Tenzin. Saltrall sighed in relief that there was a lull in fighting, no matter how temporary. His attention was soon drawn away when Mako pointed towards Air Temple Island.

"Oh no," Tenzin said, a shocked expression on his face, seeing the Equalist airship that was attacking the island.

"Come on, let's take the TARDIS back," Saltrall said, turning to run back towards his ship, but Mako stopped him.

"No, I think we should take Oogi back," He said, crossing his arms.

"What, why?" Saltrall replied, looking at him, "The TARDIS can get us there instantaneously, it's a much better idea."

"I think it'd be better for us to be able to see what we're getting into before we get into it." Mako replied flatly.

The others all mumbled in agreement except for Korra, who was silent.

"Come on Korra, you know it's the right thing to do," Mako said, obviously trying to urge her on to his side, making Saltrall clench his jaw but he didn't say anything.

"I know, but..." She started, looking at Saltrall. Saltrall just turned away from her gaze.

"Go with them, we don't have time to argue," He said before running off without a second glance.

Korra frowned and looked at the ground but she looked up when she felt Mako tug on her hand.

"Come on, we have to go," He urged her. She nodded softly and they ran after the others.

Saltrall growled softly as he slammed the TARDIS' door behind him.

"That son of a bitch," He growled, throwing his Sonic onto the couch. He felt like Mako suggesting an alternative to his idea and then trying to urge Korra away from Saltrall was a personal attack. He fumed quietly as he threw down the levers and twisted the knobs that controlled the TARDIS.

He threw the lever and took off, still scowling and grabbed his Sonic as the TARDIS landed. He applied the brakes and stormed out of the craft. He saw that the others were already there and Tenzin was hugging his kids and he walked over.

Mako smirked a little when he saw him approach.

"I told you it was quicker," He said, a hint of smugness in his voice.

"Shut up, I took my time," Saltrall snapped back angrily. Korra frowned and looked at him before walking over to him and pulling him aside, causing Mako to scowl jealously.

"What's going on?" She asked Saltrall quietly once they were away from the others a bit. Saltrall took a deep breath and let it out through his nose, trying to calm down, but not having much success.

"He did that to spite me," Saltrall replied, cracking his knuckles.

"Why would he do that?" Korra asked, a little surprised at the accusation.

"He's probably jealous," Saltrall replied, "he loves you and he's worried that I'm trying to take you away from him, even though you aren't with him."

Korra looked down, realizing what he said was true. Saltrall sighed and rubbed his neck.

"It doesn't matter, I've calmed down, we can talk about this later." He said softly.

"You sure?" She asked, looking at him. He nodded and she smiled softly.

"Come on, the others are probably wondering what's going on." Saltrall said and Korra nodded in agreement and they walked back over with the others.

Saltrall watched as Tenzin ran inside and walked over to Lin.

"Where's Tenzin going?" He asked Lin, watching him go.

"Pema's gone into labor," Lin replied seriously.

"Oh," Saltrall said, surprised, "Gotta admit, timing could've been a bit better."

Lin chuckled and shook her head, "I think we all would've preferred that, Saltrall."

Saltrall smiled and turned but his smile faded when he saw the other airships coming towards the island.

Lin looked where he was and frowned. "Korra, Mako, come on, we need to get Tenzin and the others," She said as she turned and ran inside, followed by Mako and Korra.

Saltrall ran over to the others as they watched the airships close in quickly. He grabbed both Bolin's and Asami's hands and dragged them towards the TARDIS.

"Hey, what about the others?" Bolin asked, trying to get free, but Saltrall opened the door to the TARDIS instead.

"Get in, and stay in, I'll get the others, and this time I'm not taking no for an answer." Saltrall replied seriously as he looked at both of them.

Asami nodded and went in, followed by Bolin. Saltrall turned and saw the others coming out and ran over to them.

"I got Asami and Bolin in the TARDIS where it's safe, come on we need to go," Saltrall said as he panted softly before he noticed Tenzin getting Oogi ready, "Tenzin, where are you and your family going?"

"I'm just getting them away from here," Tenzin replied without looking at him. Saltrall nodded in understanding before looking at Mako.

"Get in the TARDIS," Saltrall said before turning to Korra, "Get Naga and bring her, too," He looked up, "I'll stay here and help until you're ready." Korra tried to argue but Saltrall stopped her, "No arguing. Go!"

Korra nodded and ran off to get Naga while Mako grabbed Saltrall's arm, making him look at him.

"You sure this is the right move?" He asked, concerned.

Saltrall nodded. "100 percent positive," He replied. Mako smiled softly and turned to run to the TARDIS. "Mako, wait," Saltrall said, causing Mako to look at him. "I'm sorry for earlier,"

Mako nodded, "Yeah, me too, but we need to put that behind us," He replied as he ran off just as a cable landed from the air ship.

Saltrall drew his sonic and used it on the cable, snapping it, sending the few Equalists on it falling into the bay below. Saltrall looked over and made sure Oogi took off safely and focused back on the airship.

"Saltrall, come on!" Korra shouted from behind him. He turned and ran over, hopping on Naga's back behind her as they made it to the TARDIS. Mako was waiting by the door and closed it once they were in.

"I didn't think she was gonna fit, looking at it from the outside," Korra said as she slid down Naga's side. Saltrall hopped off and walked over to the console.

"It's an illusion, the door is, as you can see," Saltrall motioned towards the door, "more than wide enough, but it looks thinner to maintain the camouflage."

Saltrall pulled the lever and they took off. He sighed softly and turned around. The others were looking around nervously and Naga was sniffing around.

"So, what now?" Saltrall asked Korra and Mako who were standing next to each other, "You two went in, what's the plan?"

"We go into hiding, at least for a bit," Korra said looking at him.

"We could stay in here, it seems like a nice enough place," Bolin chimed in from behind Korra and Mako.

"I don't know, I can take us-" Saltrall started before he was interrupted by a banging on the door.

"Get this door open!" He heard the Equalist Lieutenant say from the other side.

"Shit, no time to discuss things," Saltrall said, quickly putting in some coordinates into the console and pulling the lever, sending them off to safety away from the island.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter XXVII: Rest

Saltrall parked the TARDIS and went over and looked outside. He sighed in relief when he saw that they were in a tunnel and out of harm's way.

"Coast is clear," Saltrall said, turning around and looking at the others who all looked relieved. He held the door open and let Korra, Mako, bolin and Naga out, but he saw Asami get up more slowly than the others. She was looking down sadly so Saltrall walked over to her.

"Hey, you okay?" He asked her with gentle concern in his voice.

She looked surprised, not expecting anyone to notice, or care, about how she felt.

"Oh, I'm," She started before sighing, "I'm actually not very good at all," She finished with a sigh and she sat back down, putting her head in her hands.

Saltrall walked over to the door quickly, "Hey, I'll be out in a couple minutes, gotta check on something and I need Asami's help!" He shouted at the others who were down the tunnel a ways.

"Okay!" Mako shouted back as he wrapped an arm around Korra's shoulder and they started walking away. "It looks like a straight shot but do you want us to wait?" Bolin added.

"No, you go ahead, we'll catch up!" Saltrall replied. Bolin gave a thumbs up and he turned and they kept walking. Saltrall sighed and closed the door. He thought about Korra and Mako for a second before going back over to Asami.

"This is about Mako and Korra, isn't it?" Saltrall asked, sitting next to her and looking at her.

She nodded but didn't look at him. "I don't know what to do," She said sadly, "I feel like he doesn't even care about me any more."

Saltrall put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure he cares about you," he said softly, "But it seems, to me anyways, that," He sighed, unable to find the right way to finish that sentence, so Asami finished it for him.

"That he loves her instead of me," She said, a hint of bitterness in her voice as she looked away from him, a small scowl on her face.

"Yeah, sure, let's, uh, go with that," Saltrall replied awkwardly, shifting a little away from her, "but if it's any consolation I'm right there with you."

She looked at him, confused, and furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?" She asked him, quizzically.

Saltrall blushed and looked away from her. "I may have feelings for Korra too," He muttered, barely above a whisper as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Asami was shocked, "Did you say what I think you said?" She asked.

"Well that depends, if you thought I said 'hoopity doopity dabble dow' no," He replied, "but if you thought I said 'I have feelings for Korra as well,'" He snapped his fingers and gave her a thumbs up, "bingo."

"Have you told her?" Asami asked, seemingly forgetting about her own issues and focusing on Saltrall's predicament.

"Kinda?" Saltrall said in a questioning tone, "see, I haven't said 'Korra, I love you,' but I feel like I've made it so obvious to her that she has to know by now, it's complicated"

Asami smiled softly and put a hand on his shoulder. "Well hopefully things work out for you," She said in a calm manner.

Saltrall smiled and nodded, "The same for you,"

Asami frowned a little, as if remembering her own romantic misfortunes and stood. "All we can do is hope."

Saltrall stood as well, "Amen to that," He chuckled, "come on, the others have to be waiting for us by now."

Asami nodded and they left the TARDIS. They walked quietly and for a good distance before they reached the others. They were in a large open area full of wooden storage crates, both covered and uncovered, and it was full of hobos.

They looked around and eventually found the were sitting with an older, rotund hobo with grey hair.

Mako looked over as we walked up. Asami scowled a little and Mako rolled his eyes.

"Finally made it, I see. Fix up what was broken?"

"Yeah," Saltrall replied, "Chameleon circuit blew a fuse, quick repair with the Sonic, no biggie. Who's our friend here?"

The hobo hopped up with more energy than Saltrall thought possible for a man of his age and stature.

"Gommu's the name, hoboing is the game, welcome to our home!" He said holding his arms out, motioning to all the other hobos living down there.

Saltrall nodded slowly. "Yes, hello, nice to uh, nice to meet you."

"He's a very wise hobo!" Bolin said with excitement.

Everyone looked at him with blank faces and he blushed before muttering under his breath and looking down.

Saltrall opened his mouth to say something but he closed it and squinted when he noticed a figure in the corner. His eyes widened when he saw it was an Equalist.

"Excuse me a minute," he said as he pushed past Mako and ran towards the Equalist, who tried to get away. He didn't get very far before being speared through a wooden crate by Saltrall.

Saltrall jumped up immediately, grinning, "WOOOO! I've always wanted to do that!" He said enthusiastically. The Equalist was knocked unconscious and the others ran over.

"What the heck was that?!" Korra asked, kind of surprised.

"Standard spear takedown, it's a simple move, really" Saltrall replied, still smiling as he tossed the intruder over his shoulder with a grunt.

Everyone either sighed and shook their heads or chuckled.

"Well, now what?" Korra asked, "Do we keep him or kill him."

"I don't see any tactical advantage of keeping him, as much as I hate to say it, I think we should kill him, keep his uniform, I don't like loose ends." Saltrall said forlornly.

The others didn't like the idea either, but they all agreed it was necessary. Saltrall pulled out his Sonic and killed the Equalist quickly and painlessly. They stripped his uniform off of him and tossed his body out into the bay.

Saltrall hung up the uniform. They had agreed that the guys could take turns wearing it and going up to the surface for reconnaissance and then try to secure a women's uniform at the same time. Saltrall asked Asami what happened to hers but she said she tossed it after learning about her father's involvement with everything.

It was later that night and Saltrall was standing outside of the tunnel the TARDIS landed in. It was disguised as a wooden box and he leaned against it with a frown as he watched Equalists desecrate the statue of Avatar Aang with banners and an Amon mask.

"You know it's funny," He said and turned to face a startled Korra.

"Jeez, you scared me Saltrall, I didn't know you heard me." She chuckled, "anyway, what's funny?"

"I'm not from here, I'm an alien for Christ's sake, and yet..." He stopped, trying to think of the proper wording, "I don't really want to leave."

"Really?" Korra asked with genuine curiosity, "you don't want to go back to your home, or dimension or wherever you're from?"

Saltrall shook his head, "It's weird, maybe it's because I've been here for a while now but I feel like this is my home now."

Korra smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. "I understand," she said comfortingly.

Saltrall nodded and smiled back before sighing and turning away from here.

"But I know I have to leave eventually." He said.

"Why?" Korra asked, "If you think of this as your home, why don't you stay?"

"Because I don't belong here, I somehow ended here, on Earth, but it's the wrong Earth, and..." He shrugged, he couldn't really think of a good reason, "I just think I do."

Korra hugged him softly and after a few seconds he hugged back.

"It's okay, you're a genius, you'll figure it out, I know you will." She said, rubbing his back unconsciously.

He smiled and relaxed into her hug. He didn't say it out loud, but he knew that he was really home in Korra's arms. Whether that was right or not was a different debate.

After a few minutes he pulled away.

"You need to go to bed," He said with a soft smile.

Korra nodded and yawned, as if for emphasis. Saltrall chuckled and pushed her playfully.

"Off you go now," He said and smiled, "Goodnight Korra."

"Goodnight Saltrall," She replied, smiling warmly before turning and walking back down the hallway she came from.

Without another word Saltrall turned and looked at the statue one last time before walking into the TARDIS.


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter XXVIII: Infiltration

Saltrall sighed softly and rubbed his face after he closed the TARDIS door. He sat down on at the console and thought about what he was going to do next. He had come to grips with the fact that he he had feelings for Korra, but now it was just a matter of figuring out what to do about it.

He decided that the best way to take his mind off of it was to be productive so he twirled some dials and pulled the lever and his TARDIS took off quietly.

He went back to his bedroom and waited for it to land by getting a rubber undershirt and grabbing his staser just as the TARDIS settled down and landed.

Pulling the monitor around and checking his surroundings he smiled and hopped the railing, grabbing his Sonic off of the couch and opening the door and emerging into the hallway of the Equalist base.

Looking around carefully he slipped out and closed the door. He started creeping down the hallway and pressing his back against the wall and looking around the corner.

"Oh, hello," He said awkwardly as he turned into the main corridor where five Equalists were staring at him. "This is the Equalist HQ isn't it? See I was looking for the, um, Multiplicationists HQ, I'll just be on my way now."

He turned to run back to the TARDIS as they started charging him only to find three more blocking his path back.

"Ah, bloody hell" He muttered under his breath before he yelled and charged the three, with the five close behind.

He speared the one in the middle, knocking him to the floor before reaching into his pocket for his Sonic. He gulped when it wasn't there and he saw it on the floor just in front of the other five Equalists. With a groan he punched the grunt to his right and kicked the one behind him.

Looking at his handiwork, three grunts groaning in pain on the ground he turned towards the five, only to find the middle one holding his Sonic in his electric glove.

"Please don't," He said, with a tinge of whining in his voice, "That thing is really important."

He couldn't see the face of the man who was holding the Sonic, but he was sure he was smirking as he charged his glove and sent a large amount of electricity through the Sonic, making it smoke.

"Dammit," Saltrall muttered before glaring at them. The leader pointed at him and the other four charged him. Saltrall drew his staser and stunned all five of them. He walked over them and grabbed his ruined Sonic. He tried to activate it but all it did was whir weakly and flicker green.

He sighed and kicked the leader in the chest.

"You're an asshole," He said, annoyed and he turned and saw the other three standing back up.

He ran at them and they ran at him. He punched through the middle one but was tripped by one of the other two. He tumbled to the ground and slid across the floor. He got up quickly and dodged a punch but was hit in the gut by the other arm.

He groaned and stumbled backwards but dodged the next punch and swept his leg and grabbed the head of the Equalist, bringing it down onto his knee and knocking him out cold. The other Equalist tried to electrocute him, but his rubber undershirt kept him safe. He quickly knocked out the final attacker by squeezing both sides of his neck, cutting off his carotid arteries and letting him collapse to the ground.

Saltrall walked back into his TARDIS and threw his destroyed Sonic onto the couch.

"Well that was the stupidest thing I've done in 500 years," He mumbled under his breath. He grabbed his sonic and unscrewed the glowing power core from the back. "Let's see what we can salvage, shall we?"

He went over to the console and plugged the power core into it's spot. He sighed a little in relief as the monitor flashed to life and started showing readings and information from his various adventures. He tapped the option that said "transfer data" and waited for it to transfer everything to the console. When it was done he took the now dark core and threw it away.

"Well, I guess I'm useless now," He muttered and turned away from the console. He went over to the couch and grabbed the rest of it as he heard the console hum. He turned around, confused and looked at it.

His eyes widened when he saw a brand new screwdriver emerge from the console. His surprised expression turned into a grin and he hopped the railing and grabbed it.

"Even after 500 years you still surprise me, old girl!" He said rubbing the console and taking the Sonic out of the slot it emerged from. He had never used a Sonic tool before the Doctor gave him an old version of his, the one that was just destroyed.

He looked over his new Sonic, it was blue and silver and had four tubes running up to the tip. It's handle was some struts jutting out a little and it fit perfectly in his hand.

"Made just for me," He whispered with a smile. It had a switch instead of a button and he pushed it up and then down.

"Oooooh, blue AND green," He said, "I approve." He pushed it up twice and then down twice, making it do other functions. He reasoned he'd have to test it later but for the time being he placed it on the console and flew back to where his friends were. He traveled forward to the morning so they would be getting up and he grabbed his new tool and walked out of the TARDIS back to where his friends were.

He arrived just as Korra was starting to stir. He smiled and sat on a box and admired his new Sonic. Korra sat up and stretched and looked around.

"Oh, hey Saltrall," she said, smiling softly before rubbing the sleep from her eyes and standing. Saltrall smiled back and put his Sonic in his pocket.

"Good morning, you sleep good?" He asked, leaning against the box behind him.

She shrugged and stretched, "As good as I can, I guess."

"Sometimes that's all you can hope for right?" Saltrall asked as he yawned.

Korra looked at him questionably. "Didn't you get any sleep last night?" She asked after he yawned.

Saltrall blushed lightly, "No," He replied, "it's actually only been about 15 minutes since you went to bed for me."

She looked confused before it registered in her brain, "Right, time traveler," She said with a knowing nod, "I forgot you could do that."

Saltrall laughed, "Yeah, I had a long night, lost my Sonic, got a new one, you know, average night."

Korra raised an eyebrow, obviously implying Saltrall continue.

"Well, funny story, I decided to infiltrate the Equalist HQ, alone, stupid, I'm aware, but it sounded easy 'hey, I have magical box that can go almost anywhere, what could go wrong?' I thought, well, a lot as it turns out." He explained, "A lot can go wrong."

Korra just sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head.

"I really can't leave you alone can I?" She asked him.

He shrugged, "Guess not," was his simple reply.

She chuckled and turned, "come on, let's go wake the others, they'll want to hear your story."

Saltrall nodded and they woke up the others. Once everyone was awake they sat down and listened to Saltrall's encounter.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter XXIX: Confessions Part I

"What the hell were you thinking?" Asami asked when Saltrall finished telling his story. The others except for Korra all voiced a similar question. Saltrall clenched his jaw and stood, not expecting that reaction.

"I've been around for over 600 years. I've faced down Cybermen, Daleks, Slitheen and every other menace in the galaxy! I thought a simple recon mission would be simple and I didn't want to put any of you at risk!" He shouted back in response he growled and stormed down a nearby hallway.

"No matter what his intentions, that was stupid and reckless," Bolin said and the others agreed with him. Everyone except for Korra who stood and jogged after him while Mako watched.

Saltrall punched a box and growled in anger, trying to calm himself.

"Saltrall?" Korra asked, approaching him cautiously.

Saltrall looked at her but kept pacing. "You here to talk shit too?" He asked angrily before punching the wall.

"Saltrall, what's going on? You're never like this. Talk to me, please." She replied, slowly walking up to him. He kept pacing until she grabbed his arm, which made him stop.

He sighed and rubbed his face, almost as if he was snapped out of a trance.

"I'm so sorry, Korra, I didn't mean to-" He started, but was interrupted by Korra kissing his cheek and smiling.

He blushed and looked away. Korra giggled and smiled.

"That's the big old dork I know," She said, smiling, "Now come on talk to me."

They sat down on a crate leaning against the wall and Saltrall looked at his Sonic.

"I-I think that was the Pentamood Disorder rearing it's ugly head," he said with a nervous chuckle. "I'm so, so sorry, Korra, really."

He looked at her and saw her smiling softly. She put her hand on his and he felt himself calm down more.

"It's completely okay, Saltrall, I'm just glad to have my friend back." She said.

Saltrall smiled a little before sighing and standing.

"I have to go apologize to the others," He said as he started walking back down the tunnel.

Korra opened her mouth to say something but closed it and frowned a little, deciding now wasn't the time.

She followed behind Saltrall at a distance looking down at her feet as she walked, lost in thought. Suddenly two Equalists appeared seemingly out of nowhere and grabbed Korra from behind.

"Hey, what the-!" She exclaimed, trying to shake free, "Saltrall!" She shouted, before one of them covered her mouth with a rag.

Saltrall wheeled around and saw it. "Korra!" He shouted and ran towards the three of them, grabbing his Sonic from his pocket.

One of them grabbed her and ran off, the other stayed back to face Saltrall. Saltrall just pressed the switch down and made his Sonic glow blue. He ran past the Equalist who struggled to moves his legs.

"_Blue is non-violent, got it, that means green must be violent, good to know," _He thought to himself as he kept running.

The commotion attracted the attention of the others, who ran down the corridor.

"Saltrall, Korra what's happening?" Asami yelled as they stopped to catch their breath. When they didn't hear anything they ran faster, past the stunned Equalist.

"Well, we know we haven't passed them yet," Mako said, panting as he ran. They eventually caught up to Saltrall who was slamming his hands against the wall at the end of the tunnel.

"NO NO NO! DAMMIT" He shouted, desperately slapping the wall and using his Sonic.

"What happened?!" Asami shouted as they tried to catch their breath.

"Korra's been kidnapped, I stopped one Equalist but the other opened a door and ran through. I can't- OPEN DAMN YOU!" Saltrall replied, his voice desperate as he kept slapping the wall.

"What?! They took Korra?" Mako exclaimed, making Asami frown and look away. Saltrall wheeled around.

"You three," He said, pointing at them, "you go on foot, take Naga and try to pick up a trail," He pulled a communication device from his pocket, "Here, use this and call me if you find anything,"

He tossed it at Mako, who caught it. "Wait, why don't we all take the TARDIS?" Bolin asked.

"Too risky, I have no idea where they've taken her and if we all go together we can all be captured together," He replied, "Trust me, I can handle myself in a fight."

Mako nodded reluctantly, "I hate to say it but he's right, come on guys, let's go,"

The others sighed but nodded and ran back down the hallway. Saltrall waited a bit before walking back to his TARDIS. He sighed and went in.

"Alright Korra, I'm bringing you home," He said to himself as he went to the console.

He lied to the others about not knowing where Korra was being taken, he knew exactly where they were taking, after all, he'd been there before, and it made sense they take her to the same place. He pulled out his Sonic's power core and stuck it in it's spot. He had seen that when Amon tried fiddling with it while he was captured that he accidentally activated a tracking system without realizing it. Saltrall deactivated it but kept the log, which he brought up on screen and set coordinates near the starting point on the log.

He gathered his things and waited to land. When it did he put on the brakes and opened the door. He was outside the Equalist base where he was kept hostage. He hadn't had a good chance to look at it when he escaped, but now he saw that it appeared to be an old factory taken over by the Equalists.

He heard a motorcycle engine coming closer and he ran and hid behind some stacked crates. He watched the Equalist with a bound and gagged, but still struggling Korra behind him. Saltrall watched as the door opened and he drove inside before the door closed behind them.

He moved from behind the crates and looked around. He knew he couldn't follow through the door, too many guards, he looked up and saw a low standing roof next to the TARDIS with some high windows leading inside the building.

"Bingo," He whispered and pushed a large crate next to the TARDIS.

"Sorry girl," He said as he rubbed the side of his craft before maneuvering his way up on top of the ship. He took a few steps and jumped onto the roof.

He ran over to the window and looked in. He saw a large room, full of science and chemistry tables, at least that's what it looked like. Saltrall pulled out his Sonic and managed to remove the window completely. It was a calm day, which was good because that meant that there wouldn't be a draft. He set it down quietly and climbed through.

He landed behind a safe just as the door opened. He crouched down and listened.

"How is the serum production coming?" He heard one voice say.

"Good, very good," Another one replied, "We can use the test dose on the Avatar once she's been drugged and restrained."

"Are you sure that's safe?" The first man asked, "Amon will kill us if we do anything to the Avatar."

They had walked over to the table right next to the safe and had their backs to it. Saltrall stood up and killed them both with his Sonic.

"Not if I kill you first." He said as their lifeless bodies crumpled in heaps to the ground.

He walked around the safe and stood in front of the table, kicking one of the corpses so it rolled over out of his way. Normally he'd have felt empathy for killing in cold blood, but these weren't normal circumstances. This was a rescue mission, but not only that, he was here for revenge.

He looked at the chemistry table in front of him. It had several test tubes and vials full of clear and dark liquids, along with a bunsen burner and two syringes on top of a notepad. Curious, Saltrall moved the syringes and looked at the note.

_Welopurpate development following time frame perfectly. Drug in current state can paralyze whoever is injected for 5 hours. Preliminary tests on rats successful, Amon OK'd first human test on Avatar._

Saltrall clenched his fist and looked at the two syringes. One had a purple liquid inside.

"That must be the Welopurpate," He said to himself, picking it up and looking at it closely before setting it down and looking back at the notepad. The rest of the page had various scribblings, but at the bottom of the page there was a list of ingredients and the formula for the drug. Saltrall ripped it out and folded it into his pocket. He looked at the next page and kept reading.

_Isopropylanthine development progressing faster than expected. First human test successful, the subject has been cured of his bending. More tests to follow before mass production can begin._

Saltrall's eyes widened when he read the last bit.

"No, that's not possible..." He said, looking at the other syringe, which was full of a clear liquid. "A drug that can paralyze and a drug that take away people's bending..."

He gulped and shook his head, trying not to think about the horrible implications that come with the knowledge that the Equalists are developing drugs to take bending away from people. He saw the formula under the notes, but there was more, smaller writing below that. He gave it a closer look.

_Production on combined paralytic-bending cure is progressing slower than anticipated. Looking for new chemicals and ingredients to prevent further reactions._

Saltrall growled softly and looked at the syringes again before pointing his Sonic at them and shattering them. He watched the liquid drip off the table and flow around the instruments. He sighed and put the other piece of paper in his pocket before tossing the notepad in the puddle.

He knew he had to find Korra and get her out of here. He dragged the corpses out of plain sight and put on one of their uniforms. He pulled the mask over his head and put the Sonic in his pocket.

"Alright, oh, good, voice changer," He said as his voice deepened, "That works very good."

He stepped out of the room and closed the door. He looked around and locked the door with his Sonic. Trying to avoid unnecessary attention he stayed off to the side and found a map of the facility pinned to a wall. He scanned it with his Sonic and double tapped the switch. The blue light shined on the floor and he followed it to a door.

Saltrall placed his ear against the door and heard Korra cry out in pain. He looked around again before opening the door. The guard was standing in front of a bound Korra with her hands over her head and legs separated. The guard was torturing her with an electric glove. He grabbed her shoulder and shocked her causing her to yell in pain. Korra looked at Saltrall with pure fear when she saw him in disguise, which made his heart drop.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" The guard torturing Korra asked, turning and facing him.

"Amon said you could use a break." Saltrall replied, drawing his Sonic.

"Wait, what the- GAHHH!" The guard cried out in pain as Saltrall pressed the Sonic to his head and killed him.

Korra looked surprised and terrified, tears rolling down her cheeks. Saltrall looked away before going back over to the door and locking it with his Sonic. After he did that he ripped his mask and ran over to Korra.

"Saltrall, oh thank God it's you..." Korra said as she burst into a fresh round of tears. Saltrall released her restraints and she fell into his arms before hugging him tight.

"Shhhhh, shhhhh, you're okay, I'm here, I'm here," Saltrall said softly, petting her head as she cried into the crook of his neck. He held her close, trying to keep his own composure. He pulled his communicator out of his pocket.

"Mako?" Saltrall asked.

"We're here, any news?" Mako replied, his voice crackling out of the device.

"I got her, get back to the sewer, we'll meet you there." Saltrall replied. He smiled softly when he heard the audible sighs on the other end.

"Right, we're on our way." Mako replied, relief filling his voice.

Saltrall smiled, "See you soon," He said before hanging up and drawing his Sonic.

He held it in the air and his TARDIS appeared out of nowhere. He picked up Korra and carried her into the TARDIS before closing the door behind him.

He sat on the couch and rubbed her back.

"It's okay, Korra, you're safe, thank God you're safe now." Saltrall said softly, moving a loose strand of hair from her face and wiping away a stray tear.

Korra sat up slowly and sniffled. She looked at him with relief and... something else was in her eyes. Saltrall watched her and he saw that look in her eyes. He was about to ask what happened but Korra got the jump on him.

Before he knew what happened Korra grabbed his cheeks, pulled his face close, and kissed him.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter XXX: Confessions Part 2

Saltrall was shocked and surprised at first, but he soon recovered and started kissing her back. He put his hand on her cheek and that seemed to snap Korra out of a trance. He eyes shot open and she pulled away and scooted away from Saltrall.

"Ohmygod Ohmygod Ohmygod!" She said frantically, turning away from him. "I'msosorryIdon'tknowwhatcameoverme-"

"Korra," Saltrall interjected, but she kept rambling.

"youprobablyhatemenow,andItotallyunderstand-"

"Korra!" He tried again, but she kept incoherently trying to explain herself. He rolled his eyes and turned her head and kissed her deeply.

Korra's eyes widened again but this time she didn't pull away. After a few seconds it was Saltrall who pulled away. They were both panting softly.

"I don't hate you, I could never hate you." He said softly, trying to comfort and calm her.

"But-but-but," She stammered, "I kissed you, just out of nowhere, how can you NOT hate me?"

Saltrall blushed a little and smiled. "Because I love you, Korra."

"You... do?" She asked, blushing heavily.

Saltrall nodded and stood, walking over to the console. He pulled the lever and the TARDIS took off. He didn't know where they were going, but he knew they needed alone time.

Korra stood and walked over slowly. She walked up the steps and stood behind Saltrall. Saltrall was bent over the console, his head down with his eyes closed. He didn't know Korra was there until she wrapped her arms around his midsection and placed her cheek against his back.

Saltrall sighed and gripped the edge of the console.

"I'm sorry that's how you found out, I'd been meaning to tell you for a while." He said dejectedly.

Korra frowned when she heard how sad he sounded.

"I know you just did that because it was the heat of the moment, I've seen it before." He said.

"But it wasn't," Korra said softly, unwrapping her arms from around him, making him finally look in her direction.

"I was terrified, I was tortured, I wanted to curl up in a ball and die," Korra said, her voice shaking as she fought back tears, "All I could think was 'any second Saltrall will bust through the door or a window and save me,'"

Saltrall stayed silent, listening to her confession.

"And when I saw another Equalist come in I thought I was done for," She said, failing to stop her tears as she sniffled, "I thought I'd never be able to tell you how I really feel."

"Korra..." Saltrall said softly, turning to face the crying Avatar, "When I saw how scared you looked when I walked in while I was disguised my hearts broke," he hugged her and she hugged back, crying softly into his shoulder.

"I hadn't felt so... sad in years, I had a plan, but when I saw the fear and the tears and the pain, I just... Threw it away and saved you as fast as I could."

Now it was Saltrall's turn to fight the tears. Korra looked at him and rubbed his cheek.

"Don't you see you big dork?" She asked, giggling through her tears, "I love you too."

Saltrall blushed and looked shocked. "Really?" Korra nodded, "And here I thought I was making it more obvious."

"Well I mean, what with Mako and all, I-I-I just assumed-" Saltrall stammered, wiping a stray tear away as Korra put a finger over his lips and kissed his cheek.

"Of course I do, it's just," She sighed and looked down, "I don't know what to do."

Saltrall nodded and leaned against the console. "I think I know," he said.

Korra looked at him, "Really?" She asked, hopefully.

Saltrall nodded, "It pains me to say this but I don't think it's right for us to be together."

Korra's small smile faded, "O-oh," she said, not expecting that response, "Why not?" She asked, voice quivering.

"Because I'm over 37 times older than you," He said.

"So? You look barely 27!" Korra replied, a hint of desperation in her voice.

"That doesn't change anything." Saltrall replied before he rubbed his face, "And what about Mako?"

"I don't even know anymore! I care about him, but I think deep down I've always cared about you more," Korra replied, her tone fully desperate. She walked over and hugged him.

Saltrall didn't react for a couple seconds before he slowly wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm not saying never, Korra," He said, making her look up at him, "I'm saying not now,"

She looked away and nodded, resting her head against his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry," He whispered, rubbing her back.

"I understand," She whispered back before sniffling, "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, anything," Saltrall replied, looking at her when she looked up at him.

"What if it's only in here? In the TARDIS?" She asked, a fresh hope glint of hope in her eye, "just the two of us."

Saltrall thought about it. "How would it work?" He finally asked.

"I don't know, I just want to do it." Korra replied before frowning and looking away again, "nevermind, it was a stupid thing to ask."

"No it wasn't," Saltrall replied. Korra didn't look at him and he sighed. "Korra, please, we both need to think this through, this has been a rough couple hours."

Korra still didn't look at him or say anything in reply. Saltrall kept rubbing her back and thinking before he came up with something else to say.

"They didn't do anything else to you... did they?" He asked softly.

Korra pulled away and let out a shaky breath. "They took me to a different place first."

Saltrall felt his hearts sink again. "What do you mean?" He had another thought, "How... How long did it take for me to rescue you?"

Korra shook softly, "At least three hours," she said, "Probably more, I couldn't tell you."

Saltrall turned away from her.

"I'm so, so sorry," He said, not able to bring himself to face her, "I had no idea I took so long, I thought I got there ten minutes after you were taken."

Korra looked at him, his back turned from her, "To answer your question, no, they didn't do anything else to me, just shocked and beat me for hours."

Saltrall slammed his hand on the console suddenly, making Korra jump.

"Dammit!" He shouted, "I should've been faster, I could've stopped them." He said before punching the console and sliding to the floor.

Korra walked over quickly trying to comfort him. "You did everything you could," she said, rubbing his shoulders.

"That's what they said after Giorgio died, and Zenkath too." Saltrall replied, putting his head between his knees and wrapping his arms around his calves.

Korra suddenly realized what he meant. He wasn't just upset that he couldn't keep her safe, or keep her from being tortured, he felt guilty that he let another person he loved get hurt.

"Saltrall, please listen to me," She said softly, rubbing his shoulder. He didn't move.

"I'm still here, you did save me," She said,"You didn't mess up, or fail, you succeeded."

"But I let you get hurt," He replied, still not moving.

"But I'm okay, Saltrall, thanks to you."

Saltrall lifted his head up and looked at her. "But..."

She kissed him softly to keep him from talking.

"You saved me, that's all that matters." She said, rubbing his cheek, "I'll never forget what you've done for me, or anyone else, you've done so much more than you needed to, not just for me, but for Tenzin, Asami, Makoa and Bolin, you're a hero, Saltrall."

Saltrall thought for a second and managed to smile softly.

"I... I guess I did save you," He replied, eyes softening as he began to forget the memories that had just haunted him.

"You did," Korra replied, realizing she was helping him forget his nightmares, at least for now, "You saved me, that means you aren't a failure or anything else, don't think about your failures, think about your successes."

He nodded a little, the thoughts of his fallen friends coming back, but this time he managed to push them away.

"You're right," He said, leaning against her softly, letting go of his legs, "I failed then, I'll always have to live with that, but I can also live with the fact that, just this once, when it really mattered, I didn't fail."

Korra smiled and stood, helping Saltrall up, "Good, that's what I want you to think about from now on."

Saltrall hugged her and she hugged him back.

"Thank you, Korra, so much," He whispered into her ear.

"That's what friends and loved ones are for, to help each other," She whispered back.

After a few minutes Saltrall finally, reluctantly, pulled away. He smiled a little and rubbed Korra's cheek.

"You wanna know something, Korra? I think you're a damn good Avatar." He said, making her blush and look away.

"But I have a lot to learn," She replied.

"That may be so, but you're smart, I know you'll be just fine."

She smiled and nodded, "Thank you, Saltrall."

"You're very welcome," He replied before turning to his console.

"Unfortunately, there's a real world out there, one that needs us." He said, "Go sit on the couch, I'll take us back to the sewer."

Korra frowned a little but nodded and moved under the railing and sat on the couch as Saltrall pulled the lever and sent them back to the real world.


End file.
